Udala: In a shocking incident, a forest personnel sustained serious injuries after he was reportedly stabbed and his daughter assaulted by three poachers out on bail in Kaptipada area of Odisha's Mayurbhanj district here on Sunday night. The accused, who are three brothers, are absconding following the incident.

The victim, identified as Bharat Satru Sal, a Sabuja Bahini volunteer from Podadiha  Dahisaahi village in Kaptipada, was admitted to the district headquarters hospital in Baripada after being stabbed in the neck with a tester by the miscreants. 

As per reports, Bharat was part of a forest squad which had arrested four poachers, including the accused trio, for allegedly hunting wild animals in Similipal Tiger Reserve. They had been nabbed eight months back. However, the three of them were released on bail about a month back. 

On Sunday evening, the brothers went over to Bharat's house and started abusing him. When he questioned their behaviour, they allegedly assaulted him and his daughter who was present there. The chaos suddenly escalated when Bharat resisted their move and one of them suddenly went ahead and stabbed him with a screw driver. 

"The three brothers approached us when we were going home. They manhandled me and started hurling abuses. When I asked them not to, they assaulted my daughter and grabbed my neck, threatening to kill me. Before I could respond, one of them stabbed me with a screw driver," claimed Bharat while talking to mediapersons in the hospital. 

Corroborating his claims, his wife Gandhi Singh said one of the three brothers had once been caught and beaten up by the villagers. Attempting to seek revenge, he went towards the field and summoned his other two brothers after which they attacked Bharat. "They held my husband by the collar and also grabbed my daughter's neck. When I tried to intervene and rescue them, one of them suddenly stabbed my husband with the tester," she stated. 

Meanwhile, Kaptipada police started an investigation to track down the accused. Initial probe revealed that two of the accused were from Bharat's village. A case has been registered and probe underway to ascertain the exact turn of events, official sources shared.