A protest has erupted in Kolhapur's Nandini village after a 36-year-old female elephant, Mahadevi, from the Swastishri Jinsen Bhattarak Pattacharya Mutt was moved to Vantara's Radhe Krishna Temple Elephant Welfare Trust in Jamnagar.
This came after the Supreme Court dismissed a petition filed by the mutt, challenging the Bombay High Court order upholding the decision of a High Powered Committee (HPC) to relocate the animal to the Gujarat facility.
The elephant was given an emotional farewell. Over 10,000 villagers, many in tears, gathered to bid goodbye to the beloved animal. However, the situation escalated with some people pelting stones and vandalising vehicles, including an animal ambulance, as they were not happy with the elephant's relocation. Mathadhipati Jinsen Bhattarak Pattacharya, the head of the Jain mutt, urged the crowd to remain calm and respect the court's order.
Now, the villagers have begun a 'Boycott Jio' campaign in protest of the animal's relocation. Reportedly, more than 10,000 people have ported their SIM cards from Jio. For the unversed, Vantara is the brainchild of Anant Ambani, Mukesh Ambani's son, and is supported by Reliance Industries and Reliance Foundation.
An audio call of a villager speaking to a customer care executive of Jio has gone viral. In the audio, the villager says, "Our village's elephant has been taken away by your owner. So, now many people in our village are going to boycott Jio and port their SIMs. This is the first setback for your owner."
Background:
On July 16, the Bombay HC upheld the HPC's decision to relocate the elephant to the Gujarat-based facility, citing an elephant's right to a quality life must take precedence over humans' right to use it for religious purposes.
A bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale noted in their order that the mental and physical health of the elephant suffered when it was with a Kolhapur-based trust.
The court dismissed a petition filed by the mutt against the December 2024 and June 2025 orders passed by the HPC to transfer the elephant to the Radhe Krishna Elephant Welfare Trust.
The original transfer was ordered following a complaint lodged by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India about the animal's condition.
The Kolhapur-based trust contended it owned the elephant since 1992, and its presence at religious programmes was a part of tradition.
But the HC cited a June 2024 report about the elephant's health, diet and nutrition, social environment, hygiene and cleanliness of shelter, veterinary care, and work schedule, and said they "appear to be absolutely dismal."
As per the report, the elephant suffered from "decubital ulcerated wounds" on its hip joints and a few other body parts.
