20 June 2019



Ahmedabad: The amicus curiae of the Gujarat high court in the matter of lions deaths in and around Gir Sanctuary in Gujarat, Hemang Shah in his brief given to the court has given several suggestions.

The court had sought suggestions on preventing lions deaths during hearing of this matter in January this year.

The court was hearing the matter after the death of three young lions in Savarkundala area getting run over by a goods train in December last year.

An amicus curiae (literally, “friend of the court”; plural, amici curiae) is someone who is not a party to a case and may or may not have been solicited by a party and who assists a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case; and is typically presented in the form of a brief. The decision on whether to consider an amicus brief lies within the discretion of the court.

In his brief Shah has reportedly included nine points including those related to lack of radio collaring and GPS tracking of lions, lack of natural hunt for them, issues related to railway tracks passing through the jungle, open wells in areas around the forest, electric fencing, illegal mining, illegal lions shows and said dearth of lion trackers. 

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