Enraged by its master's constant poking, an elephant went on the rampage during a Valmiki Jayanti procession at a residential area of Sahibabad in Ghaziabad on Monday.
Enraged by its master's constant poking, an elephant went on the rampage during a Valmiki Jayanti procession at a residential area of Sahibabad in Ghaziabad on Monday.
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The elephant, part of an entourage of three jumbos brought to take part in the procession, ransacked the house of a resident. It was later pacified and the residents escaped unhurt.
"One of the mahawats was thrashing the elephant and it soon got infuriated. It entered the lanes and attacked my house. I lost my television, stabilizer and several flower pots," said Rohtash Kumar.
"My family members escaped unhurt as they were outside. The animal was later controlled by other mahawats," Kumar added.
People for Animals (PFA) activists have denounced the incident and the use of elephants for processions.
"The beating by mahawats is totally unacceptable. This could have led to some bigger incident. Before we could reach the place, the owners had taken away the elephant," PFA coordinator Ashima Sharma told Hindustan Times.
Senior police officials said a compromise was reached between the procession organisers and the victim's family, who got a certain amount as damages.
"The elephant was brought here for a puja procession. We will check if necessary permission had been taken to use animals for the procession," circle officer Arvind Kumar Yadav told Hindustan Times.