Death of elephant: HC directs govt to file postmortem report

The Madras High Court today asked Tamil Nadu government to file a detailed report on the postmortem and other details of the elephant 'Maharaj' which died in captivity at a camp in Anamalai Tiger Reserve (ATR) last night.
An interim direction to this effect was issued by the first bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice R Mahadevan when a mention was made by counsel for a PIL petitioner who had moved the courton Mondayto stop the authorities from tranquilising and trapping the free-roaming animal in the wild.
The jumbo, which caused extensive panic and destruction around Madhukkarai region in Coimbatore district for the past one year and killed three persons, caught public attention after forest authorities decided to capture and convert it into a camp elephant in a sanctuary.

However, on June 17, conservationistPrema Veeraraghavan filed a PIL to restrain Chief Wildlife Warden or anyone from in any manner capturing, taming, tranquilising or harming the elephant.
Instead, she wanted the court to order authorities to systematically study man-elephant conflict in forest areas and take steps for mitigation and for making the area safe for settlers through alternative methods like making concrete trenches, maintaining fences and other methods suggested by wildlife experts.
The PIL, however, was listed for hearing onlyfor June 20, when the authorities informed the court that the elephant had already been captured and sent to Varakaliyur camp in Top Slip, about 60 KMs from Coimbatore, with the help of four kumkis (trained and tamed elephants).

Responding to the PIL-petitioner's apprehension that officials may endeavour to keep the elephant in captivity rather than translocate it as per the requirement of the second proviso to Section 11(a) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, the government had told the court that all norms had been followed during the capture and transportation.

Belying the assurance, however, the pachyderm died while in forest department custodyyesterday.
A mention was made of the episodetoday before the first bench and the government said the postmortem of the animal was scheduled to be done by government veterinarians and that the entire process would be video-taped too.

"We will keep the court informed of the development after postmortem, Additional Advocate General P H Arvindh Pandian told the court. Taking note of the submission, the bench said once it is over, a report should be filed in court.
No date was fixed for submission of the report.