Hinduism not so fragile that it will collapse without elephant for festival: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court on Thursday dismissed Cochin Devaswom Board (CDB)'s application seeking exemption from complying with the guideline on keeping a three-metre distance between elephants during a temple festival at Thripunithura. [In Re Captive Elephants v Union of India & ors].A Bench of Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Gopinath P said the directive was essential to ensure welfare of the animals. Such practices must align with constitutional principles, it added."If the use of elephants is not mandated by any scripture, then it is not an essential religious practice. We are not saying not to have elephants. For sustaining the faith of the people and the religious fervour, it is fine to have elephants, but you have to substantiate that a distance less than 3 metres is justifiable," Justice Nambiar remarked..CDB had moved the application for exemption for the upcoming Vrishchikolsavam at the Poornathrayeesa Temple, Thripunithura.Advocate KP Sudheer, representing the Board, submitted that parading 15 elephants during the festival at the temple is an integral part of the ritual.However, adhering to the directives would limit the number of elephants that could participate in the festival, disrupting the longstanding traditions associated with the festival, it was submitted.At this, Justice Nambiar said,"We refuse to believe that Hinduism is so fragile that it will collapse without the presence of an elephant."The Bench also underscored that all practices, other than essential religious practices, must yield to the constitutional mandate."Until you show that without the elephants the religion ceases to exist (aana illenkil Hindu religion motham illandaavum enn kanikyan pattillenkil), there is no question of an essential religious practice," Justice Gopinath remarked..The High Court in July 2021 had initiated suo motu public interest litigation (PIL) petition to address animal cruelty.Currently, the Court in this case is focusing on the well-being of captive elephants which are often subjected to harsh conditions during parades and festivals.On November 13, the Bench had issued interim guidelines to prevent cruelty on pachyderms and asked the authorities to ensure compliance with the Kerala Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) Rules, 2012.The guidelines issued include mandatory registration of festivals and keeping of a minimum three-metre distance between elephants during parades.Advocate KP Sudheer appeared for Cochin Devaswom Board.Kerala Festival Coordination Committee was represented by advocate Renjith B Marar..[Read Order]