SC order on elephants in fests turns focus on decades-old tussle in Kerala
The HC's push to enforce guidelines sparked tension among temple festival committees and large fan clubs of captive elephants in the state.
The Supreme Court’s order on Thursday, effectively staying restrictions imposed by the Kerala high court on the use of elephants in temple festivals may have, for now, resolved the latest battle between tradition, heritage, and culture on one side, and safety of both elephants and the public on the other -- but the larger war is likely to continue.
In that stayed ruling delivered on November 14, a high court bench, comprising justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Gopinath P, went above and beyond the Kerala Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) Rules, 2012 while deciding on a suo motu case regarding cruelty to elephants.
Thus, while the rules mandated ”sufficient space” between elephants in parades, allowed processions on roads in early mornings and evenings and did not specify how long the elephants could be displayed, the court mandated a three metre gap between elephants, a ban on processions on public roads between 9am and 5pm, and a minimum of eight hours rest for the pachyderms in 24 hours.
The high court’s insistence on adherence to the guidelines it issued understandably touched a raw nerve among temple festival committees and large fan clubs of captive elephants in the state. Its order was appealed in the Supreme Court by the Thiruvambady and Paramekkavu Devaswoms, organisers of Kerala’s iconic Thrissur Pooram festival. They, and other organising committees, claimed that for centuries, elephants have occupied a central place in major temple festivals and used primarily to carry the deities.
The high court highlighted its seriousness by ordering, on December 11, a contempt of court case against the Devaswom officer at the Sree Poornathrayeesa Temple in Thrippunithura for flouting these guidelines at the annual festival of the in the first week of December.
On December 14, at the iconic grounds of the Vadakkumnathan Temple in Thrissur, an unlikely political bonhomie was seen on the stage of “Utsava Raksha Sangamam” (festival protection meeting) of the temple festival committees. BJP state president K Surendran, senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala, CPI leader and former minister VS Sunil Kumar, who do not see eye to eye on most issues, shared the stage and backed the call for an appeal against the high court order.
“There is an attempt to disrupt around 6,000 temple festivals and it cannot be allowed. While we need to conduct festivals and fireworks display safely, the decision to impose stringent restrictions that could pave the way for elimination of such rituals is wrong, whether it comes from the court or the government,” Chennithala said.
Surendran of the BJP exhorted the ruling Left government to amend the existing 2012 Rules that can override the guidelines of the courts. “In Tamil Nadu, when Jallikattu was similarly banned, the state government there introduced a law to override the objections and allowed its conduct. Similarly, the government and the opposition here, who are always united, should bring in legal measures to protect our customs. BJP will support it,” he said.
The Supreme Court’s order has obviated the need for this.
G Rajesh, secretary of the Paramekkavu devaswom, said that while some of the guidelines in the high court order were welcome, adhering to all would have made the conduct of festivals like the Thrissur Pooram impossible.
“We agree that safety of the people (who come to festivals) and the elephants is paramount. There should be adequate distance between elephants and the people. Elephants must be looked after well and they must not be tortured. Public should also be discouraged from touching or coming near elephants. Festival committees will ensure that,” he told HT.
“But the guideline of three metre gap between each elephant is not practical. A one metre gap is enough. Elephants, even in the wild, live and move in herds. They stay close to each other,” added Rajesh.
The Devaswom official said courts should not decide what constitutes “essential religious practice”.
“Such practices are prescribed by the thanthri (chief priest). Since time immemorial, all rituals and customs in a temple are decided by the thanthri and they are written in the scriptures as well. For centuries, our deities are paraded during festivals on the backs of elephants. Epics have attested to it. Such displays are part of our culture and tradition.”
Dr PS Easa, a wildlife biologist and former director of the Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI) who recommended the 3m gap between elephants to the high court bench, said it was important to avoid contact between the tuskers.
“The 3m gap is based on body-to-body length of elephants and will keep them apart. The behaviour of certain animals may provoke others,” he told HT before the top court stayed the high court order.
In July, the Kerala government informed the high court that there were only 408 captive elephants in the state, an all-time low, of which 369 were owned by private individuals and 39 under the care of the forest department.
The gradual decline in the captive elephant population, many believe, has led to elephants being overworked as temples and other religious and social institutions compete to hire them for festivals and events. This has also meant that the cost of hiring elephants for events has gone up from a few thousands years ago to lakhs currently.
Balaji, a mahout who handles the famous Erattupetta Ayyappan, an elephant who was caught from the wild and trained at the government’s Kodanad rehabilitation camp over 40 years ago, says the dwindling number of captive elephants is a big problem that will only worsen in the next few years.
“If there were more elephants, their demand would reduce and their workload would decrease,” he said. “It is a reality that elephants are extremely overworked and are easily tired.”
