Hyderabad: Mahadevi or Madhuri, the 36-year-old temple elephant who was deployed in Hyderabad’s ancient Bibi ka Alam Muharram procession in 2023, has been moved to Vantara‘s Radhe Krishna Temple Elephant Welfare Trust in Jamnagar, Gujarat, following a Supreme Court directive upholding her rehabilitation on health grounds.
The move has triggered a storm of protests and emotional appeals from Kolhapur residents and religious leaders, while also raising questions about Vantara’s operations and its ties to corporate interests.
Mahadevi was taken from Kolhapur to Hyderabad in 2023 to be part of the Bibi ka Alam procession held as part of Muharram. The processional event, dating back to the Qutb Shahi era, requires that a sacred relic be carried on an elephant through Hyderabad’s Old City. With past elephants such as Rajani and Hyderi no longer available, Mahadevi was taken in for the ceremonial purpose.
Animal activists had objected to the import and utilization of the elephant for public functions without appropriate clearances. Charges made were violation of the Wildlife Protection Act and subjecting a sick elephant to distress in transit and procession.
Vet checks revealed Mahadevi afflicted with various ailments such as arthritis, rotting of feet, lameness, and mental stress. Her shift to a suitable care center was recommended by a High Powered Committee of India’s Environment Ministry. The same was upheld by the Bombay High Court and subsequently by the Supreme Court, despite fierce resistance from Nandani village-based Jain mutt, which sought to claim ownership over the elephant.
On July 29, while forest authorities were making preparations for the relocation, more than 10,000 villagers arrived at the spot to stop the relocation. The crowd turned aggressive, and police vehicles were vandalized, with police personnel left injured. The villagers complained that they were not informed about the removal of the elephant and alleged that authorities were “snatching away a religious symbol.”
Even as the protest was on, Mahadevi was moved to Gujarat by July 30 morning in a specially designed ambulance.
Though Vantara, a project of the Reliance Foundation, calls itself India’s biggest elephant care and rehabilitation facility, its operations have been questioned by activists and local leaders, who accuse it of functioning behind a corporate veil. According to them, elephants brought to Vantara are kept in seclusion from the public and utilized to present a clean image of corporate conservation.
Petitions filed with the President of India by local communities allege that the transfer circumvented local consent and was insensitive to emotional, religious, and historic ties. There also are demands for greater transparency in treatment of elephants after transfer and whether rehabilitation is actually being offered.
