Amid the outrageous incident, a carnival elephant paraded nearly three kilometers on Sunday (April 6, 2025) at a temple festival at the Sree Sundareswara temple in Talap, Kannur.
The video of the elephant, identified as Mangalakunnu Ganeshan, who was obviously struggling to walk due to injuries, has surfaced and attracted criticism from animal welfare activists and the public.
Despite the wounded and apparently injured legs in their bodies, the elephants were brought from Parakad and paraded as part of the temple celebrations, which began on Sunday. During the parade, the animals were seen with lim and obvious pain.
After reporting the issue in the media, the Temple Management Council held an emergency meeting on Monday morning and decided to send the elephant back immediately. “We noticed the situation of the elephant and decided to exclude it from further participation in the festival,” Temple officials said.
Animal welfare organizations have called for strict action against elephant owners and call for strong regulatory oversight to prevent such cruelty.
publishing – April 7, 2025 11:34 pm ist
