Bahraich: A 51-year-old woman was killed in a suspected leopard attack while cutting fodder for her cattle in a forest-fringe village near the Bahraich-Lakhimpur Kheri border, fuelling panic among residents of the area.The victim, identified as Rajkumari of Durga Gaudi village, had gone to her agricultural field in Premnagar hamlet to cut sugarcane leaves for livestock when the incident took place. Officials and villagers said the big cat was likely hiding in the dense sugarcane crop and attacked suddenly, pouncing on her, gripping her by the neck and dragging her towards the nearby forest.Her cries were heard by Manohar, a farmer guarding his pointed gourd (parwal) crop in an adjoining field. He raised an alarm, after which villagers rushed to the site. The crowd and noise forced the animal to retreat, and it fled into the forest, residents said.Villagers who reached the spot found Rajkumari in a critical condition. Family members arrived shortly after, but the animal had already escaped. Officials later recovered her partially eaten body and confirmed that she died from injuries sustained in the attack.Personnel from the Dhaurahra forest range and Murtiha Kotwali police station reached the scene and initiated formalities. The body was taken into custody and sent to Bahraich for post-mortem examination. As the incident occurred after nightfall, the autopsy was conducted on Thursday afternoon.
