Bhadarwah/Jammu Aug 1 (PTI) A three-year-old leopard was found dead in a forest near Bhadarwah in Doda distrct of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday evening, said officials.

The Forest and Wild Life Department ordered a probe following discovery of the leopard body in jungles near Shoppan village on the outskirts of Bhadarwah town.

The authorities said the wild cat died either of some ailment or was attacked by villagers.

The authorities swung into action and visited the spot after some photograms of the dead animal's carcass began doing rounds on social media.

"A portion of a skeleton was found near Shoppon village. It seemed to be that of a leopard. We will send it to Forensic laboratory for examination and after confirmation, we will start legal action," said Kishtwar Wild Life Warden Majid Bashir.

He said he informed Bhadarwah Divisional Forest officer Chander Shekhar after the pictures of the dead leopard at Shoppan village about 5 km from Bhadarwah town started doing rounds on social media.

The DFO reached the spot along with Range officer Shafqat Malik and started probe, he added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)