CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has upheld the order of a single judge directing that three elephants belonging to the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam in Kanchipuram be returned to the Peetam.
The three elephants Sandhya (50), Indu (30) and Jayanti (14) were being used for temple festivals and rituals at the Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam with valid certificates.
After the mahout who had been caring for the elephants passed away in 2015, the jumbos were handed over to the Forest Department for maintenance. Subsequently, they were housed and maintained at the Tiruchy MR Palayam Elephant Camp.
In the meantime, stating that all necessary facilities had been created for their upkeep, the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam filed a petition before the HC seeking permission to bring the elephants back to the Konerikuppam Elephant Camp it owns.
Thereafter, the single judge who heard the matter ordered that the jumbos to be handed over to the Peetam within a week. The judge further directed their safe transportation in Forest Department vehicles at the cost of the Peetam.
The elephants were to be shifted to the Konerikuppam camp only after a team of three veterinarians submitted a report on their health condition. The court also permitted the use of the elephants for religious rituals and directed that their health be inspected once a month by the District Health Department.
Challenging this order, Principal Chief Conservator of Forest Department filed an appeal before the HC. The matter came up for hearing before the first Division Bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan.
During the hearing, the counsel appearing for the department submitted that the elephants were aged, and that sending them back could adversely affect their health and sought additional time. Rejecting these submissions, the Bench observed that the department had retained the elephants belonging to the Peetam for six years.
Since the Peetam had made adequate arrangements for their care, the department could not refuse to return the elephants.
The Bench directed that the jumbos be handed over after proper medical examination and held that there was no reason to interfere with the order of the single judge.