Just a few days ago, we were greeted with the heartbreaking news of a pregnant elephant dying after she ate a pineapple filled with firecrackers that were fed to her allegedly by some locals in Kerala, India. The firecrackers exploded in her mouth, injuring her severely and inevitably led to her death.
This incident sparked outrage all over the world and justice was demanded over the fate of the poor animal.
The World Animal Protection even wrote to Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar, the Kerala Chief Minister Pinaravi Vijayan and local authorities urging swift and strong action against the suspects, according to The News Minute.
However, there seems to be more to this story than meets the eye.
“No one would’ve fed the pineapple to the elephant. She found it somewhere and consumed it unknowingly.”
An Indian Forest Service Officer shared that the pineapples were originally meant for wild boars who cause the locals their property destruction. While this in NO way is less cruel, he added that the locals would never feed the elephant with such poisonous materials knowingly.
“Some people actually do such insane things as they consider wild animals as a threat to their property and life. Such incidents do happen at places where wild animals create problems for human beings,” he said.
Is there a political agenda behind all this?
While it’s hard to believe that the brutal death of an innocent elephant could be made into a political agenda, apparently, it did happen. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, a member of BJP (India’s ruling party), was accused of gaslighting communal hatred and even alleged that Malapupuram is the “India’s most violent state in animal cruelty”.
Mallapuram is know for its intense criminal activity specially with regards to animals. No action has ever been taken against a single poacher or wildlife killer so they keep doing it.
I can only suggest that you call/email and ask for action pic.twitter.com/ii09qmb7xW— Maneka Sanjay Gandhi (@Manekagandhibjp) June 3, 2020
Since this state is a Muslim majority state, her tweet triggered Islamophobic replies from members of her own party.
A Twitter user even corrected her saying that the incident happened in Palakkad, not in Malappuram as most reports suggested.
At the end of the day, what happened to this elephant was tragic and we should strive to protect all the voiceless animals in the world. Too many times, they’ve depended on us and we’ve done nothing but disappoint them. Let this incident be something that brings us together and not further divide us.
Also read: Artists Pay Tribute to Pregnant Elephant Killed In India While Calls For Justice Continue to Grow
