Uttarakhand govt removes Director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve

Dehradun: Senior Indian Forest Service officer Rahul has been removed as the Director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve - a post he had assumed less than a month ago.

His transfer order dated September 3 said Rahul is now being posted as the Chief Conservator of Forest, monitoring, assessment, IT and modernisation.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday reprimanded Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami for appointing Rahul as the Director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve disregarding the advice of the state forest minister and the chief secretary to reconsider his decision.

Rahul was the Director of Corbett Tiger Reserve when illegal tree felling and construction were carried out in the core zone of the reserve.

Heads of governments cannot expect to be "kings" and "we are not in a feudal era", the Supreme Court said on Wednesday on the issue of Rahul's appointment.

However, the state government told a bench headed by Justice B R Gavai that the order posting the Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer as the director of the tiger reserve was withdrawn on September 3.

The bench, also comprising Justices P K Mishra and K V Viswanathan, was hearing a matter concerning the appointment of IFS officer Rahul, a former director of the Corbett Tiger Reserve, as the director of the Rajaji Tiger Reserve.