Kozhikode (Kerala) | Kerala Forest Minister A K Saseendran on Saturday visited a local temple where three people were recently killed after elephants ran amok, and announced that the government has decided to take legal action against those found violating various norms related to the incident.
Three elderly people including two women died in the stampede, which occurred when two elephants became agitated following the bursting of firecrackers during the festival at Manakulangara Temple near Koyilandy on Thursday evening.
The minister stated that officials from the forest department, district administration and police had rushed to the spot soon after the tragedy, conducted necessary examinations and submitted reports to the government on Friday.
"What we see in these reports is that the persons concerned failed to comply with the Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) Rules. The district administration has raised concerns over whether adequate precautions were taken while bursting firecrackers during the festival," he told reporters.
Based on these findings the government has decided to take legal action, Saseendran said.
He also emphasised that the respective district monitoring committees are responsible for exercising extra caution regarding fireworks displays during festivals, as they grant the final approval for such events.
According to the police, the agitated elephants initially attacked each other. During their fight, they struck a nearby building inside the temple premises causing one of its walls to collapse on the people standing there. This resulted in the deaths on Thursday.
The elephants then ran out of the temple premises triggering a stampede as the festival attendees scattered in panic, leading to injuries to over 20 people, police said.
On Friday, the minister stated that the firecrackers were carelessly burst during the festival and that the elephants' legs were found unchained, which was a violation of the Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) Rules.
He also said that action would be taken against the elephants' owners and the temple management.