Purnima, an elephant rescued by NGO animal right activists in 2007, was brought to Pune roads once again which inadvertently led to the death of a pedestrian.
Purnima, an elephant rescued by NGO animal right activists in 2007, was brought to Pune roads once again which inadvertently led to the death of a pedestrian.
The elephant flung a pedestrian on the road, who was then run over by a speeding Pune Pariwahan Mahamandal Ltd bus on Wednesday.
Faraskhana police arrested mahout Kisankumar Kumbhakarnar Gautam, but he was released on bail
yesterday.
Surprisingly, the elephant had stopped consuming food and water since the accident. Manoj Oswal, Animal Welfare Officer (Hon) of animal Welfare Board of India, said, "Elephants are very sensitive animals. Purnima realised that she had done something wrong, so out of guilt she stopped eating."
He said, "These animals earn around Rs 15-25,000 from attending weddings. With so much of money riding on the animal, it's no surprise that everyone wants look the other way damning the rights of the animal and public safety."
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