Pregnant elephant fed pineapple stuffed with crackers died in Kerala
Palakkad (Kerala) [India], June 4 (ANI): Kerala Forest Minister K Raju assured that strict action will be taken against those involved in the killing of the pregnant elephant in the state and also clarified that the incident had taken place in Palakkad, and not Malappuram.
It is important to note that BJP MP and animal rights activist Maneka Gandhi had slammed the Keralagovernment on Wednesday for not taking the issue of cruelty against animals seriously and had alleged that “Mallapuram is known for its intense criminal activity especially with regards to animals.”
“Strict action will be taken against the culprits who are responsible for the killing of a pregnant elephant. I want to clarify that it happened in Palakkad not in Malappuram.
Regarding, the remark of Maneka Gandhi, I don’t want to comment at this juncture,” Raju told ANI here. Gandhi had, later on, slammed the incident as a case of “murder” and had termed Malappuram as the “most violent district” in the country while talking to ANI.
“It is not an incident. It is a murder. A pregnant elephant was fed a pineapple filled with bomb that exploded its mouth. Malappuram is very famous for incidents like this. It is the most violent district in the whole of India,” Maneka Gandhi told ANI.
The elephant had died on May 27 after she ate the pineapple stuffed with crackers and forest officials said that it died standing in river Velliyar after it suffered an injury in its lower jaw.
The elephant was seen standing in the river with her mouth and trunk in the water for some relief from the pain after the explosive-filled fruit exploded in her mouth.
Culprits will be brought to book, says CM Vijayan on Kerala elephant death
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said strict action will be taken against those involved in the killing of the pregnant elephant in Kerala and culprits will be brought to justice. He said that the forest department is probing the case and soon justice will be served.
“Strict action will be taken against those who are responsible for killing the pregnant elephant. Forest department is probing the case and the culprits will be brought to book,” Vijayan said.
Pregnant elephant `murdered’ in Kerala district: Maneka Gandhi
Former Union Minister Maneka Gandhi on Wednesday termed the death of a pregnant elephant in Kerala after she ate cracker-stuffed pineapple allegedly given by a local as “murder” and said Malappuram was the “most violent district” in the country. “It is not an incident. It is a murder.
A pregnant elephant was fed a pineapple filled with bomb that exploded its mouth. Malappuram is very famous for incidents like this. It is the most violent district in the whole of India,” Maneka Gandhi told ANI.
“It is not only the killing of elephants that Malappuram is famous for. The panchayat throws poison at random on the road so that hundreds of birds and dogs die at one time.
They will hit women and there have been political conflicts in which they have cut off people’s arms. It is an extremely violent area and the government of Kerala has taken no action at all.
It seems like they are scared of them,” she said. Maneka Gandhi, a BJP MP and an animal rights activist, said India has been left with less than 20,000 elephants and soon they will reach “tiger status”.
“We have less than 20,000 elephants left in India, their numbers are very rapidly declining and soon we will reach tiger status for elephants,” she said.
The elephant had died on May 27 after she ate the pineapple stuffed with crackers and forest officials said that it died standing in river Velliyar after it suffered an injury in its lower jaw.
The elephant was seen standing in the river with her mouth and trunk in the water for some relief from the pain after the fruit exploded in her mouth. Maneka Gandhi had earlier slammed the state government for not taking animal cruelty seriously.
“Mallapuram is known for its intense criminal activity especially with regards to animals. No action has ever been taken against a single poacher or wildlife killer so they keep doing it.
I can only suggest that you call/email and ask for action,” she said in a tweet. Mannarkkad forest range officer said on Wednesday that a FIR has been lodged against unidentified people under relevant sections of Wild Life Protection Act over the incident.
Centre has taken serious note of killing of elephant in Kerala, says Javadekar
Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar on Thursday informed that the Centre has taken a very serious note of the killing of an elephant in Kerala and also assured an investigation into the incident to nab the culprits. “Central Government has taken a very serious note of the killing of an elephant in Mallapuram, #Kerala.
We will not leave any stone unturned to investigate properly and nab the culprit(s). This is not an Indian culture to feed fire crackers and kill,” Javadekar tweeted. (ANI)
