Elephants in Kerala religious festivals: Supreme Court refuses urgent hearing of plea to lift stay

Supreme Court of India declines urgent hearing on Kerala High Court order to maintain elephant distance at festivals.

The Supreme Court of India on Thursday (January 23, 2025) did not heed an oral plea to urgently take up for hearing an application to lift its Order of December 19, 2024, staying a clutch of directions issued by the Kerala High Court, including that elephants must maintain a minimum distance of three metres from each other at religious festivals, parades and exhibitions.

SC asks Thrissur Pooram organisers to comply with Captive Elephants Rules, stays Kerala HC directions contrary to the law

The oral mentioning was made before a Bench headed by Justice B.V. Nagarathna by the counsel representing V.K. Venkitachalam, a petitioner in the case before the Kerala High Court.

Intervening immediately, advocate Abhilash M.R., representing Thiruvambady and Paramekkavu devaswoms, submitted Mr. Venkitachalam’s application and plea for urgent hearing was a ruse to disrupt the festival season ahead in Kerala.

Pooram lovers feel HC restrictions on parading elephants will cast shadow over festivities

The State High Court had passed a series of directions in November 2024 to regulate the use of elephants in festivities. Like three metres between two elephants, the High Court had specified a minimum distance of five metres between elephants and fire torches at festival grounds and eight metres between the animals and the public and percussion displays.

The two devaswoms had appealed the High Court directions in the Supreme Court saying they were impractical. Consequently, Justice Nagarathna’s Bench had ordered a stay on directions found “contrary” to the Captive Elephant (Management and Maintenance) Rules of 2012. The case is tentatively listed for February 4, 2025.