KOCHI: Observing that ‘human life often appears to be undervalued,’ the Kerala High Court on Thursday directed the state government to file a comprehensive report on an incident where an elephant ran amok during the BP Angadi Nercha at Tirur, injuring around 20 people.
The court stated that those responsible for the incident should be held accountable and made to pay a significant compensation. It questioned, “Who is responsible for this?” while noting, “This is not a temple festival; it is a ‘Nercha’ observed by Muslims.”
A Division Bench comprising Justice A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Gopinath P issued the order after noticing the reports regarding the incident in Malappuram.
The court further directed the Malappuram collector to file a report explaining what permissions had been obtained by the organisers to host the festival.
The court also stated that it needs clarity on what the state government means by “reasonable distance” between the elephants, in its rules.
As the rule-making authority, the state government cannot rely on ambiguous regulations. Using vague terms like “reasonable distance” without providing a clear definition is unacceptable, the court stated.