Karnataka: Two village fight over ‘holy’ buffalo’s ownership, police conduct DNA test

Karnataka’s Devanagere district has been witnessing a strange case of buffalo these days. Two villages in the district- Kunibelakere and Kulagatte- are fighting over a buffalo which is dedicated to a temple and worshipped by many devotees.  

Police have been involved and are conducting a DNA test to find out the actual owner of the buffalo. The two villages are 40 km away from each other. During this time, police have taken the custody of the buffalo at a Shivamogga goshala. 

Not a first case 

This is not the first time that these villages in Karnataka fought over a buffalo. In 2021, a buffalo was dedicated to Kariyamma Devi, the chief deity of Kunibelakere village. In the nearby Belakere village a buffalo was found simultaneously with reports of a bovine missing from Kulagatte village.  

Therefore, villagers of Kulagatte took the buffalo claiming to be its owners. One of the villagers, Madappa Rangannavar, also claimed it had been missing for two months.  

Kunibelakere villagers also claimed their rights over the buffalo. This led to a battle between the two villages which prompted police to take intervene.  

The fight was not only over the animal’s ownership, but it was also about its age. Kunibelakere villagers claimed its age to be eight years old while Kulagatte villagers said it to be three years old. After the buffalo’s examination was held, the doctors claimed it to be over six years of age. This cemented Kunibelakere villagers’s claim, but it was contested by Kulagatte village.  

However, Kunibelakere villagers filed a theft case citing seven persons from Kulagatte village to be guilty and demanded a DNA test. To support their claim the Kunibelakere villagers said that they have buffalo’s offspring.   

The case has arrived in the Davanagere SP's office, according to Kunibelakere resident Dander Tippesh. Further SP Vijaykumar Santosh attested that DNA samples had been obtained and that the issue will be settled after the test results were received.