Timber smuggler held for murder bid, destruction of govt property in Sirmaur

In a dramatic breakthrough, the police have arrested Naresh Kumar (29), a resident of Jamoli village, for allegedly setting on fire a rest house and hut of the Forest Department at Thandidhar under the Haban forest range of Rajgarh division in Sirmaur district.

The nearly 60-year-old property, valued around Rs 50 lakh, was gutted on June 29 night. While initial reports hinted it to be an accidental blaze, forest officials suspected foul play after the discovery of an empty petrol bottle at the site. Their suspicion was confirmed by a police investigation.

According to the police, Naresh Kumar was involved in timber smuggling. Days before the incident, the Forest Department had seized 35 logs of illegally felled deodar (cedar) wood from a nearby forest. After seizure, the logs had been stored near the forest guard hut pending a legal action. Enraged by the seizure, Naresh returned to the site allegedly to steal back the timber.

However, upon realising that a female Forest Department employee (Van Mitra) and her brother were sleeping inside the hut, the accused — reportedly under the influence of alcohol — poured petrol on the structure and set it ablaze in an alleged attempt to kill the two and eliminate all evidence.

The Van Mitra woke up just in time and escaped the inferno narrowly.

Naresh Kumar has been charged under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including attempt to murder and destruction of government property. The Rajgarh police have launched an investigation to uncover any timber smuggling links in the region.

Senior forest officials emphasised that the historic value of the gutted rest house and promised that forest crimes of this magnitude will be met with the strictest legal action. Security around forest assets in sensitive areas has now been tightened.