New Delhi, Nov. 3 -- The Delhi government has decided to sever its association with wildlife conservation organisation Wildlife SOS and remove its representative from the newly constituted State Board for Wildlife, following allegations against the NGO in an ongoing wildlife crime investigation in Madhya Pradesh.
Environment and Forest Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa told media that the government had decided to discontinue its association with the organisation with immediate effect. A formal order confirming the decision will be issued shortly.
The move comes days after Wildlife SOS was included in the board constituted through a gazette notification issued by the Delhi Forest and Wildlife Department in October under Section 6 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The appointment had drawn objections from Madhya Pradesh-based wildlife activist Ajay Dubey, who questioned the organisation's inclusion while its CEO, Kartick Satyanarayan, was facing allegations linked to an alleged leopard poaching network in the Kuno National Park landscape.
Sirsa said the proposal to nominate the NGO's representative had been initiated in February 2026 and forwarded to the competent authority for approval in July. However, the government subsequently learnt about cases registered in Madhya Pradesh in August concerning the alleged involvement of the organisation in wildlife crime.
"Wildlife SOS will be dropped from the Board, and its association with the Delhi Forest Department ends from today itself," Sirsa said, adding that there would be no compromise on wildlife protection.
The controversy centres on an investigation into the alleged poaching of 10 leopards. According to media reports, investigators alleged that an employee of the NGO had infiltrated a suspected poaching network and assisted its members. The case came to light following the seizure of 10 leopard skins in Agra on July 23 and the arrest of 11 suspected smugglers.
Wildlife SOS has denied wrongdoing. Its CEO has rejected the allegations, while the Supreme Court has restored interim protection granted to him after the Madhya Pradesh High Court withdrew it.
Separately, the Central Zoo Authority had directed inspections of Wildlife SOS-managed facilities in six states and a Union Territory over alleged regulatory violations, including issues concerning recognition and animal acquisition records.
The organisation, established in 1995, has been involved in wildlife
rescue, rehabilitation and conservation programmes across India.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.