It may be recalled that the department had confiscated the cub from a birthday party at a farm house in Vadodara on February 27 following which the cub was shifted to the Indroda Park, Gandhinagar, even as the Apollo Circus, which was reported to have supplied the cub to the birthday party for exhibition sought the animal back saying that it would die without its mother, which was still at the circus. However, the health of the animal, currently at Gandhinagar, was excellent, according to deputy conservator of Forests Dr R M Patel.

Circus counsel Kaushik Bhatt could not attend the court on health grounds on Monday.