Calcutta, Feb. 8: Late last year, it was in the spotlight for failing to play host to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his entourage.

Late yesterday, the heat was back on Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve when sanctuary officials broke up an “illegal party” on the premises and snuffed out a bonfire that never should have been lit.

And caught in the glow of the flames in the “outer zone” of the sanctuary in eastern Rajasthan was Jaisal Singh, the nephew of “tiger man” Valmik Thapar.

Ranthambhore is second home for the noted tiger enthusiast and expert — Thapar apparently knows every big cat there by name. Singh, who forest officials said is Thapar’s younger sister’s son, owns a hotel less than a kilometre from where the arrest was made. Thapar could not be contacted.

Singh, identified as one of the organisers of last night’s revelry, was picked up along with two others, Shankar and Tulsiram, from the tiger reserve located at the junction of the Aravallis and the Vindhyas. All three were taken to the forest office and later released on bail, a range officer told The Telegraph on Sunday.

Around 8.30 pm yesterday, a forest flying squad came across a group of people “drinking and dancing around a bonfire”, on the outer zone of the sanctuary. “It is a barren area where the sanctuary meets the agricultural land and is frequented by villagers,” said a senior official of the sanctuary.

The forest squad arrested Singh, Shankar and Tulsiram and booked them under Section 26 of the Rajasthan government’s Van Adhinayan Act of 1953.

“It was a party of five to six people. They had lit a fire and were drinking. There was loud music playing and people were dancing to it as well,” said the range officer. “We did not arrest the people who were singing and dancing, but only the organisers. Some of their possessions, such as chairs and tables, were impounded.”