Kerala High Court to frame guidelines on parading elephants for festivals, functions

The Kerala High Court on Friday stated that it will frame guidelines to protect elephants from being exploited during events such as parades during temple festivals and other social functions until the official rules are implemented to address the issue. [In Re Captive Elephants v Union of India and connected cases].A Division Bench of Justice AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Gopinath P expressed deep concern over the extreme cruelty inflicted on elephants during parades and called for a stop on such practices.The Court said that the Blue Whale would have met a fate similar to that of elephants, if it lived on land.“It is man’s ego that he parades the idol of his Lord on top of the land’s largest animal. Thank God the Blue Whale is not on land; otherwise, we would have paraded that also and elephants would have been out. This is not a custom; ithokke verum vasshi aanu (this is only obstinacy),” Justice Gopinath remarked.The Court emphasised that the practice of parading elephants for festivals and social functions is purely a commercial venture and the motivations behind it are driven by profit rather than genuine cultural or religious significance.Hence, there is a need for strict regulation to protect the welfare of the elephants involved, it opined.The Court further noted that there were significant gaps in the rules suggested by the State government for ensuring the welfare of elephants.Specifically, the bench noted that there were no regulations to determine the responsibilities of an exhibitor while parading an elephant and there were no rules prescribing a minimum distance that should be maintained between the elephants during parades. Hence, it said it will frame draft guidelines to address the loopholes..The Court was hearing a case concerning welfare of captive elephants in the State.The bench had taken up the issue in a suo motu public interest litigation (PIL) initiated in July 2021 regarding animal cruelty. The PIL had been kept open so that the Court could monitor or intervene when situations concerning animal welfare arose in the State. During the hearing today, Senior Counsel MR Hariraj submitted an affidavit containing the draft rules formulated by the government for the welfare of captive elephants. The Court noted that these rules had gaps such as time interval between parades, dietary needs, health requirements and other specifics that were not adequately addressed in the draft rules..The Court observed that while the rules mention transportation time and an 8-hour rest requirement for the elephants, they do not specify that transportation time should be excluded from the rest period.Further, the bench highlighted the need for exhibitors to provide adequate water, diet, proper shade and shelter for the elephants while hiring such elephants for parading.Timing for parading the elephants must also be decided and strictly implemented, the Bench opined..Exhibitors must ensure minimum facilities for the elephants, the Court underscored. If they have funds to pay for parading the elephants, they should likewise allocate resources for their well-being, the Bench remarked..In view of the above, the Court asked stakeholders including including elephant owners, NGOs and temple committees to propose interim measures that could be issued as a judicial order before the next festival season, until the government rules are implemented.The Court said that it will not wait for the government to formulate and notify guidelines since the next festival season would begin soon."We do not have time for the rules to be implemented by the government before the next festival season. What we will do is, whatever suggestions can be adopted, we will put it through a judicial order, rather than wait for a notification of these rules by the government,” it said.Until the official rules are implemented, these guidelines will have to be followed to ensure the welfare of elephants.The matter will be heard next on November 4 when the Court is likely to frame the guidelines.