Elderly woman recounts terrifying leopard encounter:Spent nearly an hour inside home with mentally challenged grandson

Panic gripped a residential locality in Indore’s Kanadia area after a leopard strayed into the neighbourhood from the nearby Devguradia hills, attacked two motorcyclists and later entered the bathroom of a house, forcing an elderly woman and her mentally challenged grandson to remain locked inside for nearly an hour. The leopard eventually escaped by jumping over a boundary wall before the Forest Department’s rescue team arrived. However, the incident left residents terrified, with many staying awake through the night fearing the animal’s return. “I opened the door and saw a Leopard” Recalling the terrifying experience, resident Munni Bai said she was cooking when she suddenly heard commotion outside. “I looked through the door and saw a leopard sitting right in front of the house. I immediately locked both doors. My mentally ill grandson was inside with me. We remained trapped for nearly an hour. We could hear people shouting outside, but we were too frightened to step out.” Her account reflects the fear that spread through the locality during the incident. Now see the sequence of events in 2 pictures Leopard attacked bikers before entering house According to officials, the leopard wandered into the residential area from the Devguradia hills. Around 8:30 pm on July 7, it first pounced on two motorcyclists passing through the Bicholi Mardana area. One of the riders narrowly escaped, and a video of the incident has since surfaced. After the attack, the leopard ran into a nearby house and hid inside the bathroom, prompting the family to lock themselves inside a room. A short while later, the animal emerged from the bathroom and fled towards the Shreeji Valley area. Residents stayed indoors as leopard remained nearby Munni Bai said the leopard remained near the bathroom while a crowd gathered outside the house. “No one dared to come close. Some people asked for the police, while others called the Forest Department. We remained inside throughout,” she said. Before the rescue team arrived, the leopard jumped over the boundary wall and escaped on its own. The Forest Department later searched the entire house and escorted the family outside only after confirming the animal had left. Witness initially mistook leopard for a cat Student Abhishek Jadhav said he initially thought the animal was a large cat. “Only after looking carefully did we realise it was a leopard. We immediately raised an alarm and informed nearby residents and the police,” he said. Residents demand increased monitoring near forest Following the incident, residents urged the Forest Department to increase patrolling and surveillance in residential colonies located near forested areas. They warned that unless such wildlife is rescued promptly, similar incidents could lead to a major tragedy in the future. Forest Department suspects leopard came from Devguradia hills Forest Ranger Yogesh said the leopard most likely strayed into the residential area from the nearby Devguradia hills, located around 500 metres from the incident site. He noted that leopard movement has been reported in the area on previous occasions as well. According to the Forest Department, no fresh sightings of the leopard were reported until Wednesday morning, and officials believe it likely returned to the forest during the night.