Animal rights activists and local authorities are outraged at the incident when a pregnant elephant in the Palakkad district of Kerala state in southern India was abused outside the Silent Valley National Park.
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The poor elephant was just trying to get find some food to nourish herself and her baby when she was fed a pineapple that was stuffed with firecrackers. The explosives went off in her mouth, destroying her mouth and tongue.
The animal was later found by locals trying to cool her mouth off in a stream, but as they tried to pull her out and rescue her, she collapsed and died.
One man who witnessed the incident, Mohan Krishnan, posted a moving tribute to the elephant on Facebook, but was met with responses of outrage over the horrendous acts. He wrote:
She must have been more worried about the health of the child inside her than about her own hunger.
Forestry officials in the area have opened an animal cruelty investigation in light of the case, but this tragic act was not an isolated incident, as farmers often fill the fruit with firecrackers and other explosives in an attempt to keep animals away from their property. Forest official Sunil Kumar stated:
We only know that the injury (to the elephant) was caused by some explosive substance.
The perpetrators claim that the person responsible for the elephant's death could face heavy fines and even jail time, as the Asiatic elephant is considered an endangered species.
