Elephant Thrashed Mercilessly in Tamil Nadu; Attackers Booked

Coimbatore: In a shocking incident of animal cruelty, an elephant in Tamil Nadu was brutally beaten by the mahout and his assistant with sticks. The video of the incident has been widely shared on social media, triggering outrage among the netizens.

As per reports, the incident took place at Thekkampatti near Mettupalayam in Tamil Nadu, where the jumbo was brought for an annual rejuvenation camp for the temple and mutt elephants of the local Andal Temple. The camp was organised by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department (HR&CE).

Taking cognizance of the matter the organisers suspended the mahout Vinil Kumar and his assistant Sivaprasad. A case has been registered against the two and they have been booked under various sections of the Wildlife Protection Act.

Reportedly, Kumar was quoted as saying that they beat up the elephant as the animal was not adhering to the commands of the mahout.

Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Praveen Kaswan, while sharing a link to the video on Twitter, termed it as a "sad incident".

"Mahout, kavadi booked for thrashing an elephant at rejuvenation camp. It was such a sad incident."

The disturbing video that has gone viral shows that Kumar and Sivaprasad brutally thrashing the legs of the giant animal with sticks, while it was chained to a tree. The 19-year-old female elephant kept trumpeting in pain while the duo continued to thrash her.

Enraged over the incident, netizens demanded stringent action against those responsible for the inhumane act.

Recently, the state has been under the spotlight due to the frequent incidents of man-animal conflict.

Earlier, in January, a 40-year-old elephant died after it sustained injuries as a burning object was thrown at it in an attempt to chase away the animal. It caused fatal injuries to the jumbo and it succumbed while being transported to a camp for medical treatment. The incident took place in Masinagudi in Nilgiris. Three persons were booked for the incident.

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