The Madras High Court dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed to forebear the respondents 2 and 3 (The Additional Chief Secretary, Environment, Climate Change and Forests and Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Chief Wildlife Warden Government of Tamil Nadu) from using tranquilizer in order to prevent the elephant, namely, “Arikomban” from entering into agricultural lands and direct the respondents to monitor the activities of the elephant with the help of satellite radio collar.
The PIL was filed by one Praveen Kumar further seeking direction to the respondents to appoint an expert team including Adivasies to monitor the elephant directly to pave the elephant’s pathway to the deep forest based on the representation submitted by the petitioner on 26.09.2023.
The concern of the petitioner is that the respondents are frequently tranquilizing the elephant, namely, “Arikomban”, which would endanger the life of the elephant.
P. Thilak Kumar, Government Pleader, appearing for the respondents, made a submission that the elephant “Arikomban” is now in Kalakadu Mundandurai Tiger Reserve Forest area and the activities of the elephant are closely monitored by the authorities through the GPRS Electronic track.
The elephant is peacefully living in the said forest area for the past about five months and there is no complaint from any quarter.
The Division Bench of Justice SM Subramaniam and Justice V Lakshminarayanan held that High Court cannot monitor the activities of the elephants in the forest area and laws governing the wild life and its protection will take care of the interest of the animals and the forest area and so also the authorities competent are bound to follow the statutes and rules in force in order to protect the life, safety and security of the wild life animals in the forest.
Interfering in such matters by the High Court becomes unnecessary and the expert body functioning in the Government has to monitor and take care of the interest of the wild life animals in the forest area.