Days after a tigress with a radio-collar was killed by poachers in Satpura Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, forest officials have blamed the death on the ongoing West Asia war.In a detailed response sent to the state Forest Department on the death of the cat, the Field Director of the Tiger Reserve, Rakhi Nanda, has said that the radio-collared tigress suddenly went off the radar recently “after the signal from her radio collar lost contact with the satellite, possibly owing to the ongoing war”.Documents accessed by The Tribune show Nanda claiming that the conflict had disrupted the signal transmission from the radio collar of the tigress to the satellite.In her report, she said that the tigress was relocated from Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve to Satpura Tiger Reserve on December 24, 2024, with a radio collar strapped to her neck. The tigress established its own territory, and there were no reports of human-animal conflict during that time.Nanda also said that the Chief Wildlife Warden ordered the removal of the collar on December 30, 2025, but since the requisite expert teams (veterinarians and a rescue squad) were not available, the collar could not be removed. Nanda’s justification has, however, not sat well with her authorities.Speaking with The Tribune, MP Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) Shubharanjan Sen ruled out the theory of disruption in signals owing to the West Asia conflict. “There is no reason to believe that the West Asia conflict could have disrupted the radio collar signal,” he said.Inquiries further reveal that the Forest Department on March 29 said that the tigress was poisoned and buried. Initial investigations of the department claimed a local tribal resident had laced the carcass of an ox with pesticide after his cattle was killed by the tiger. “The poisoned bait was then left in the open, leading to the tigress’s death. He later allegedly buried the carcass with the help of others to conceal the crime,” the department first said before the war theory was cited as the cause of the tigress’ death.Meanwhile, The Tribune has learnt that the collar of the tigress stopped emitting signals on March 2, following which the tracking team of the Forest Department started searching for the tigress. The war, however, began on February 28. The carcass of the big cat was finally discovered on March 28 with the help of tip offs by villagers.Local police officials say five persons have been arrested in the case.Another important detail of the case relates to the proximity of the place of cat’s burial to the region where illegal opium cultivation is done. Forest officials are now also investigating the angle of opium cultivators in the case.Wildlife activist Ajay Dubey told The Tribune that the war theory behind the death of the tigress was bizarre.“War started on February 28 and the movement of the tigress could not be tracked from March 2. And then, in 48 hours, a war disrupted the signals. The Forest Department’s theory is unbelievable. We hear they are also exploring the angle of black magic. Instead of exploring possible involvement of illegal opium cultivators in the matter, the Forest Department is busy implicating tribals or making up excuses in the name of the West Asia war,” Dubey said.