In Pulwama, people are used to big cats. Villages border forest areas, so creatures from the jungle stroll in and out of their habitat.

That's why it's hard to figure out why the people of Picho tackled a leopard with such brutality. They chased it, throwing sticks and stones at the leopard, till it ran into a cowshed.

There, tired and injured, it crouched, incapable of putting up a fight.

Experts say the villagers in the area know that barricading the leopard would have been enough. And then wildlife officials could have taken over.

But for hours, those officials refused to respond to calls. Instead, it was the police who showed up, armed with AK 47 rifles. And then they opened fire at the helpless leopard at point-blank range.

Instead, the police came armed with AK-47 rifles, as if dreaded militants were holed up - and killed the leopard at point-blank range

''There was a large crowd in the village, which is close to the town. We had no choice but to kill it," defends Kifayat Haider, Special Superintendent of Police, Pulwama

The Wildlife Warden claims the department has no staff in Pulwama who could help. The police claims it couldn't wait for animal experts to arrive from another part of the state.

And so a leopard that wasn't even fighting in self-defence was shot without a second thought.