A leopard that strayed into a wedding venue in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, injured a forest officer during its capture on February 12.

Footage shows guests being evacuated by police before launching a search operation. The rescue team then enter the premises with rifles.

The leopard suddenly catches them off guard while they are climbing the stairs. The big cat also tries to pull a rifle from an officer's hand but drops it and flees upstairs. After this, they leave the venue and lock it again. After an overnight operation, the leopard is seen lying on a stretcher after being tranquillised.

The animal will be released after relevant checks.

In a dramatic event, a leopard strayed into a wedding venue and injured an officer during a rescue operation conducted by the forest department, along with police officials and two veterinary doctors.

The incident took place in Budheshwar, in Lucknow city, in northern India’s Uttar Pradesh on the night of February 12.

Visuals show the guests being evacuated by police from the venue before launching a search operation. Later, the team enters the locked venue with rifles. The leopard suddenly catches them off guard while they are climbing the stairs. The big cat also tries to pull a rifle from an officer's hand but drops it and flees upstairs. After this, they leave the venue and lock it again. After an overnight operation, the leopard is seen lying on a stretcher after being tranquilized.

Speaking to Newslions, Sitanshu Pandey, Divisional Forest Officer, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh stated that the leopard strayed into the venue, causing hundreds of guests to flee in fear. The forest department promptly arrived at the scene and safely removed the leopard by tranquilizing it with the help of doctors. The big cat will be relocated soon. The wedding resumed after an overnight operation, the leopard was finally rescued at around 4 am on Thursday. During the operation, an officer sustained injuries to his hand after being attacked by the leopard.