A Malappuram native has been arrested in connection with the death of a pregnant elephant in Kerala. The local police have confirmed the arrest of Wilson, a native of Malappuram for his alleged involvement in the incident.
“One person was arrested today. There are more accused in the case and efforts are on to nab them, Kerala Forest Minister K Raju told reporters. The other two accused, Abdul Kareem and his son Riasudhin are absconding.
The Kerala Forest Department in a tweet said KFD has zeroed in on the culprits and recorded the first arrest in the wild elephant death case.
Meanwhile, the natives allege that the forest department did not take the necessary steps to save the elephant despite the injured elephant was seen roaming around in the forest area.
The heartbreaking incident took place near the border of Palakkad and Malappuram districts on May 27. Her lower jaw was severely injured in the firecracker blast. The elephant was starving due to the injury caused to her tongue and mouth. According to the reports, the accused told police that the crackers were not stuffed in a pineapple but in a coconut.
The brutal murder of the elephant had trigged a nationwide outrage. Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar and BJP MP and former union minister Maneka Gandhi, among others, had condemned the incident.
