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Thrissur Pooram: Supreme Court stays Kerala HC restrictions on parading of elephants

Supreme Court said that maintaining 3-metre distance between elephants during

Pooram is regarded as one of Kerala’s most important festivals, particularly for the people of Thrissur. (PTI file photo)

In a relief for organisers and fans of Kerala’s famed Thrissur Pooram, the Supreme Court on Thursday effectively stayed the directions of the state High Court regarding the parading of elephants.

A bench of Justice B V Nagarathna and N Koteshwar Singh held that any direction issued by the High Court contrary to Kerala Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) Rules, 2012 shall remain stayed. Justice Nagarathna said the Kerala High Court’s directions that mandated a three-metre distance between the elephants paraded at festivals and prohibition on procession using them on public roads between 9 am and 5 pm were “impracticable”.

Appearing for the Thiruvambady and Paramekkavu devaswoms, which conduct the Pooram festival, senior advocate Kapil Sibal told the Supreme Court that Kerala High Court’s directions affect the conduct of the temple festival with a history of 250 years. He submitted the festival is part of the UNESCO heritage list and that the requirement to maintain 3 metre distance is virtually impracticable.

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Justice Nagarathna said that “If the devotees are coming despite there being so many elephants, the principle of ‘volenti non fit injuria’ (to a willing person, it is not a wrong) will apply. They are taking the risk of coming.”

“Learned senior counsel appearing for the petitioner submitted that there is a festival which is coming up on January 5 and it is practically impossible to comply with the directions issued by the High Court. However, he submitted that the of the Kerala Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) Rules, 2012 shall be strictly complied with, both in letter and spirit,” the Bench said.

Sibal said the organisers have been following every direction of the state government and the recent developments stem from suo motu proceedings initiated by the High Court against animal cruelty in the wake of death of a dog

Sibal pointed out that there has not been any case of any devotee getting injured so far and that the High Court had not recorded anything to this effect.

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Justice Nagarathna, while staying the implementation of High Court directions, reminded that courts should not get into law making.

Ananthakrishnan G

Ananthakrishnan G. is a Senior Assistant Editor with The Indian Express. He has been in the field for over 23 years, kicking off his journalism career as a freelancer in the late nineties with bylines in The Hindu. A graduate in law, he practised in the District judiciary in Kerala for about two years before switching to journalism. His first permanent assignment was with The Press Trust of India in Delhi where he was assigned to cover the lower courts and various commissions of inquiry. He reported from the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court of India during his first stint with The Indian Express in 2005-2006. Currently, in his second stint with The Indian Express, he reports from the Supreme Court and writes on topics related to law and the administration of justice. Legal reporting is his forte though he has extensive experience in political and community reporting too, having spent a decade as Kerala state correspondent, The Times of India and The Telegraph. He is a stickler for facts and has several impactful stories to his credit. ... Read More

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