The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed that all captive elephants used for temple processions and lifting of timber in Kerala must be registered in order to implement punishment under law against persons guilty of causing cruelty to them.
The order came on a PIl filed by six organisations and individuals including Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre that estimated that about 3,000 elephants were being illegally kept by individuals and religious institutions in Kerala. The PIl complained that though the law prescribed criminal prosecution of persons guilty of meting cruelty to the pachyderms, no action was possible as there was no count of these elephants or registration of its owners.
Cracking the whip on elephant owners in Kerala, the Bench of Justices Dipak Misra and R Banumathi said, “We direct that the Chief Wildlife Warden shall see to it that all captive elephants existing in Kerala are counted and in the absence of obtainment of requisite certificate under Section 42 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 and the declaration made under Section 40, appropriate action shall be initiated.” This exercise will have to be carried out in six weeks.
The court made the State, the district committee, the Devaswom Board and Temple Management responsible for implementing its order as per the Kerala Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) Rules. The PIl complained that in temple festivals and auspicious occasions, elephants are paraded for hours without proper food and care. This amounted to severe cruelty to the animals.