The pigeon is being kept at the Khangarh police station in Punjab. (Representational)
The Border Security Force (BSF) wants to register a case against an intruder from Pakistan, that happens to be a pigeon, while the Punjab Police are seeking a legal opinion on this.
The pigeon landed on the shoulder of a BSF soldier at the Rorawala post in Amritsar, Punjab, last Saturday, allegedly after flying across the border, an official said.
A small piece of paper with a "contact number" was wrapped around its leg, the official said.
The BSF personnel handed over the bird to the police with a demand in writing for taking legal action.
Senior Superintendent of Police Dhruv Dahiya said the BSF demanded registration of a case against the pigeon.
"As the pigeon is a bird, I don't think an FIR (first information report) can be registered against it. But we have referred the matter to our legal experts for their opinion," he said today.
The number tagged on the pigeon's leg is being analysed, he said.
Pigeons have been captured earlier as well in border areas with security forces suspecting espionage attempts. Homing pigeons can be used to courier information and the tags can carry coded messages. The birds can also be innocent, tagged with identification numbers by their keepers.
For now, the pigeon is being kept at the Khangarh police station.