Bombay HC Orders Transfer Of Elephant Mahadevi To Jamnagar Rehab Centre, Upholds Animal's Right To Quality Life Over Religious Use

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has directed the transfer of a female elephant named Mahadevi alias Madhuri, held by a Jain religious trust in Kolhapur for over three decades, to a specialized elephant rehabilitation center in Jamnagar, Gujarat. The court noted that the right of an elephant to a quality life is over and above the rights of men to use the animal for religious rites.

Mahadevi, who has been housed at the Swasthishri Jinsen Bhattarak Pattacharya Mahaswami Sanstha in Kolhapur since 1992, was the subject of multiple complaints and inspections following a representation by animal rights group PETA. The Radhe Krishna Temple Elephant Welfare Trust (RKTEWT) in Jamnagar, which currently houses 238 elephants, has agreed to take her into its care.

PETA alleged that the elephant was being commercially exploited under the guise of religious tradition. According to the NGO, the elephant was rented out for a Muharram procession by the Telangana State Waqf Board for Rs4 lakh, without mandatory forest department clearance.

Photographs submitted showed the elephant forced into noisy crowds, tied with ropes, and controlled using ankush weapons, despite suffering from foot rot and arthritis.

The court-appointed High Power Committee (HPC) conducted multiple inspections and submitted reports in June and November 2024, describing Mahadevi’s condition as “absolutely dismal”. The reports recorded ulcerated wounds on her hips and elbows, severe foot rot, and overgrown, deformed nails.

In rejecting the petition filed by the Kolhapur trust, the court said: “The continued treatment of the elephant is callous and brutal. The elephant does not deserve to be used to ferry weighty humans and equipment.” The court further observed that “The efforts made by the Petitioner are too little and too late in the day, to redeem the neglect and to commiserate for the damage caused to the mental and physical health of the elephant.”

While acknowledging the religious traditions cited by the Petitioner under Article 25 of the Constitution, the court emphasized its parens patriae duty to protect the “voiceless and hapless” animal. “We have considered and chosen the survival of the elephant and its right to quality life, over and above the rights of men to use the elephant for religious rites,” the bench ruled.

Referring to the RKTEWT facility as a “godsent” option, the court noted that it offers a natural environment, professional veterinary care, and a social habitat for elephants.

The court has directed that Mahadevi be transferred within two weeks. It has requested the Chief Wildlife Wardens of Maharashtra and Gujarat to issue necessary permits and urged the police to provide logistical support.

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While ordering her transfer, the bench quoted the words of Lawrence Anthony in his book ‘The Elephant Whisperer’ — “But perhaps the most important lesson I learned is that there are no walls between humans and the elephants except those that we put up ourselves, and that until we allow not only elephants, but all living creatures their place in the sun, we can never be whole ourselves”.