The judgment by Justice J Sreenivasa Rao, delivered on January 6, ruled that while forest officials have statutory powers under the Wildlife Protection (WLP) Act, they inherently lack the jurisdiction to investigate or file charges for general penal offences such as assault or criminal intimidation under IPC. Assault on forest officialsOn March 28, 2022, forest officials of Mannanur range in Amrabad forest division of Nagarkurnool district registered a Preliminary Offence Report (POR) against the petitioners. The petitioners’ counsel contended that the forest officials have no authority or jurisdiction to conduct investigations into offences under the IPC, and that they are entitled to probe offences under the Wildlife Protection Act. Subsequently, the court quashed the proceedings to the extent of offences under IPC sections 351, read with 332 and 333. The court was not inclined to quash the proceedings regarding the offences under sections 27 and 56 of the WLP Act.