Leopard kills 5-year-old boy in Lakhimpur Kheri while sleeping beside father in field hut

In a shocking incident in Gyanpur village of Lakhimpur Kheri district, a five-year-old boy was killed by a leopard while sleeping beside his father in a field hut.

The child’s body was found several hours later in a nearby sugarcane field.

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According to officials, Sushil Kashyap, a local farmer, had gone to guard his field around 9 PM on Saturday, accompanied by his younger son, Badal. After dinner, the two fell asleep in a hut on the farmland.

Around 1 am, Sushil woke up to find his son missing from the cot. Assuming the child had stepped out briefly, he began searching, but found no trace. Just a few meters from the hut, he noticed leopard footprints, which alarmed him.

Sushil immediately alerted his family and fellow villagers. More than 20 residents joined the search operation. They later found signs indicating the presence of a leopard and eventually discovered the child’s body in a nearby sugarcane field, about 150 meters from the hut, on Sunday morning.

The family was devastated. Badal’s mother, Lakshmi, fainted upon seeing her son’s body and had to be revived by the villagers. The child had recently started school and was the younger of two sons.

Forest officials stated that the village is located just 5 kilometers from the Gola forest range, which is known to be inhabited by leopards and tigers. Ranger Sanjeev Tiwari noted that villagers had previously been advised to avoid forested areas at night due to increased wildlife activity.

DFO Sanjay Biswal of the South Forest Division said that 8 to 10 leopards and a similar number of tigers are active in and around the Gola and Sharda forest ranges. A leopard was also spotted near Indira Amusement Park just a few days ago.

Efforts are currently underway to capture the leopard, and cages have been installed in the village to prevent further incidents.