Forest Dept Cites 'National Security' to Deny Autopsy Reports of Dead Cheetahs

The Madhya Pradesh forest department has declined to release autopsy reports of cheetahs that died at Kuno National Park, invoking national security provisions under the Right to Information Act. The decision has sparked debate over transparency in India's high-profile cheetah reintroduction initiative.

In a response dated October 9 to an RTI application filed by wildlife activist Ajay Dubey, officials at Kuno National Park cited Section 8(1)(a) of the RTI Act, which exempts information that could affect India's sovereignty, security, or relations with foreign states. The department stated that disclosure could impact sensitive agreements with foreign nations involved in the project.

Project Cheetah involved bringing African cheetahs to India through partnerships with Namibia and South Africa. When Dubey also requested information about official foreign tours related to the project, authorities indicated no records were available from the divisional forest officer's office.

The activist questioned how animal autopsy reports could compromise national security and argued that withholding such information prevents scientific analysis of the deaths and accountability for any management failures. He has called on both central and state authorities to make the post-mortem findings and details of public spending on official travel publicly accessible.

Multiple attempts to reach senior Kuno officials for comment on the RTI response went unanswered. The reply was delivered to Dubey on October 12, coinciding with the 21st anniversary of the RTI Act's implementation.