Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday held discussions with officials of the Vantara project, an animal rescue and rehabilitation centre run by the Reliance Foundation in Gujarat’s Jamnagar, regarding the return of the elephant Mahadevi.
A Vantara official assured Fadnavis of full cooperation with the Maharashtra government in the legal process, stating that the centre has no intention of keeping Mahadevi, a 36-year-old arthritic elephant, in its possession and is only caring for her in compliance with a Supreme Court order.
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“I had a detailed discussion in Mumbai with senior officials of Vanatara management. They have assured me that Vanatara has decided to participate in the petition that the Maharashtra Government has resolved to file, seeking the safe return of the elephant Mahadevi (Madhuri) to Nandani Math,” Fadnavis posted on X.
“During the discussion, they informed me that they were only complying with the orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court and had no intention of taking custody of Mahadevi the elephant on their own,” the chief minister added.
Fadnavis also said Vanatara has expressed willingness to fully assist the state government in setting up a rehabilitation centre for Mahadevi near Nandani Math in Kolhapur district on the land selected by the forest department.
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Following a public outcry, Fadnavis earlier assured that his government will explore legal options to bring Mahadevi back to a Jain shrine in Kolhapur, days after she was relocated to Vantara.
After holding a meeting over the matter on Tuesday, Fadnavis said, “Considering the public sentiments, the state government will intervene in the legal process to bring back the Mahadevi elephant. The Jain shrine will submit a review petition in the Supreme Court, and the state government will help them by submitting an intervention application.”
The chief minister also indicated that the state forest department can set up a centre with facilities similar to Vantara at the Kolhapur shrine to take care of the elephant.
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Mahadevi, also known as Madhuri, was with the Swastishri Jinsen Bhattarak Pattacharya Mahaswamy Sanstha at Nandani in Kolhapur for over three decades before the Supreme Court last month upheld the Bombay high court’s decision to relocate her to the Radhe Krishna Temple Elephant Welfare Trust in Jamnagar, managed by Vantara, for better care and rehabilitation.
This was after animal welfare organisations such as the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) approached the court, underlining the physically frail pachyderm’s poor health and arguing that she was not getting proper care at the temple.
The Supreme Court upheld the high court order on July 22, after which Mahadevi was given a tearful farewell from the temple and shifted to Vantara on July 28.