Published 17:06 IST, June 5th 2020
Prithviraj, Tovino Thomas share post clearing 8 'facts' on death of elephant in Kerala
Prithviraj, Tovino Thomas and Sangeeth Sivan shared a post clearing 8 points on the death of a pregnant elephant in Kerala, that sparked nationwide outrage
The death of a pregnant elephant, that consumed a pineapple stuffed with crackers, in Kerala has sparked nationwide outrage. After some heated reactions from the stars of the film industry, sport fraternity and netizens, even Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Centre took note and are looking into the matter.
However, there seems to be contradictory versions on some of the details of the incident. Some of the leading stars of the Malayalam film industry shared a post from a journalist clarifying eight points of the case. Actors Prithviraj, Tovino Thomas and director Sangeeth Sivan were among those who shared the post on social media.
The initial report and one of the main reasons for the outrage that the elephant was ‘fed’ the cracker-laden pineapple, seems to be false as per this post. The post claimed that the elephant ‘accidentally’ ate the explosive pineapple, something villagers used to fend off wild boars from attacking their crops. The post termed it as a commonly used tactic, ‘though illegal’, around the country to protect the crops from wild animals.
It also stated that incident took place in Palakkad and not Malapurram, as initial reports claimed. The reason to highlight the area has been over the ‘communal’ angle created due to the areas, with the post also asserting that there was ‘no communal angle’. The post also clarified that the incident took place on May 27.
It also stated that forest department tried to save the elephant after it consumed the pineapple and struggled before dying standing in the river. The post also clarified that the department and the police had registered the cases and were investigating it.
Here are the posts
Earlier in the day, the Kerala Congress had hit back at Bharatiya Janata Party for claiming that the incident had taken place in Malapurram. Congress leader Chennithala demanded an apology from Member of Parliament Maneka Gandhi, who was one of those who made the claim. Meanwhile, one person has been arrested in connection with the case and the hunt for the two other culprits are underway.
Updated 17:06 IST, June 5th 2020