Four elephant jaws and tusks seized

Pathhalgaon, Chhattisgarh, Dec 18 (UNI) Four elephant jaws and tusks -- weighing 14 kg and worth Rs 50 lakh in international market -- have been seized from a group, involved in smuggling body parts and skins of wild animals, police said.

''Police had received information about a group involved in smuggling body parts and skins of wild animals,'' Raigarh Superintendent of Police Deepanshu Kabra told reporters here yesterday.

Based on this information, a plan was chalked out to nab the members of the gang and a decoy customer was sent to strike a deal.

Brijraj Chouhan and Jagdish Oraon were arrested when they reached at the given spot.

A case was registered against the accused under sections 9 and 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act.

Mr Kabra said the group had links in Jharkhand and Orissa.

In view of the presence of wild elephants in Raigarh and Jashpur districts, police were investigating over matters related to their death.

UNI XC-PS 1559