The West Bengal forest department has arrested two people while they were attempting to smuggle clouded leopard skin near Jaldapara National Park in Alipurduar district, sources said on Saturday.“We are not disclosing the names of two arrested as of now since we believe that they are just small pawns of a major wildlife smuggling racket,” said a senior official of the state forest department.

The divisional forest officer of the Jaldapara National Park Sandeep Kumar Berwal told newspersons that both the persons who have been arrested in this connection on Friday are residents of north Bengal. The clouded leopard skins they were trying to smuggle were brought to the state from neighbouring Assam.