The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Court comes to the rescue of elephant

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Sep 04, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Court comes to the rescue of elephant

Staff Reporter

BANGALORE: The Karnataka High Court has come to the rescue of a temple elephant of Bangalore and directed the Forests Department to temporarily house it in any camp or forest it thought fit.

Justice Ashok Hinchigeri passed the order on two contesting petitions, one by the Jalahalli Sree Aiyappa Temple Trust of Bangalore and another by Compassion Unlimited Plus Action (CUPA), with each of them fighting for the custody of the elephant.

The story of the elephant unfolded in 2000 when a devotee from Kerala, Jacob Abraham, gifted it to the temple. The elephant was named Girija Prasad alias Manikanta and soon the Forest Department issued a certificate of ownership to the temple.

The temple claimed that it mounted an idol of Lord Aiyappa during the “Mandala” season and ever since February 25, 2002 the elephant has been under its care and custody. The temple and the elephant became so famous that pilgrims from near and far came to Jalahalli in Bangalore have a “darshan” of Aiyappa and Jalahalli Manikantan.

The temple claimed that the elephant had attained the status of an icon for people.

In its petition, CUPA urged the court to quash the certificate of ownership given to the temple, saying that the elephant had been ill treated and the temple lacked a facility to house and maintain the animal. Mr. Ashok Hinchigeri disposed of the petitions and directed the PCCF, Wildlife, to hear both the temple authorities and CUPA before deciding on the ownership.

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