Vezhoto Hesuh case: Porba clan backs bribe FIR, disowns spokesman

The clan of Vezhoto Hesuh, the Phek district youth at the centre of a months-long wildlife case in Nagaland, has said it wants the police investigation into an alleged Rs 1 lakh demand for his release to continue, and has disowned a man who called for the case to be dropped, Hub News reported on Monday.

In a clarification issued on November 9, the Dzüdotsomi clan of Porba village said Shekho Thuluo had neither the authority nor the consent of the family or the clan when he addressed a press conference on November 3. Thuluo has been described in earlier reports as Hesuh's foster father.

'Withdrawal would protect erring officials'

The statement, signed by clan chairman Veduta Dzüdo and secretary Shetso Dzüdo, rejected Thuluo's call to withdraw the FIR. Withdrawing it, the clan said, could obstruct justice and shield Forest Department officials who may have done wrong.

The clan said it would keep cooperating with investigators and asked for a fair, swift and time-bound probe. It also asked the media and social media users not to present Thuluo as a spokesperson for the clan or the family, and said it reserved the right to take legal action.

The October 14 settlement

The clan also disputed Thuluo's claim that the family had been left out of the settlement reached through the Centre Chakhesang Youth Organisation (CCYO). It said its chairman attended the October 14 meeting at Hotel Japfü in Kohima, along with representatives of the Porbami Youth Organisation (PYO), the Porba Village Council and the Porbami Social Club, Kohima. The document signed by Hesuh was executed at Porba village that evening in the presence of the CCYO, the PYO, village leaders, the clan chairman, family members and the Forest Department, it said.

Last week the PYO had also written to the CCYO saying Thuluo was not authorised to speak for the village, and asked the apex Chakhesang youth body to wait for its final report. At his press conference, Thuluo had questioned why he was summoned by police if the matter had been settled, and said he had not seen the agreement.

How the case began

Hesuh was detained in September by the Wildlife Crime Control Unit of the Wildlife Division, Dimapur, over photos and videos of animals posted on his social media page, and a Great Barbet was seized. The detention drew protests from Chakhesang youth bodies in Pfutsero.

In mid-October, Nagaland Police said the State Crime Police Station had registered a case under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Prevention of Corruption Act on a complaint that a wildlife division official and others demanded Rs 1 lakh to secure his release. Police said an audio recording had been recovered and sent for forensic examination, and that the allegations remain under investigation. No one has been charged in court so far.