Guwahati: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India has submitted a veterinary inspection report to forest department officials in Tamil Nadu and Assam showing the continued abuse of captive female elephant Joymala.
In response to ‘false claims’ being made about the videos of elephant Joymala (Jeymalyatha) such as that there is only one or that it is “old”, that all of the problematic mahouts have been dismissed, or that she is “fine”, PETA India has provided details of facts in the report and in a compilation video.
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The report also reveals that the elephant was beaten so savagely that she can be heard screaming in pain in a viral video filmed at the Krishnan Kovil temple. The elephant is kept chained to the floor in the temple. Previously, a video showed her screaming while being beaten by two mahouts at a rejuvenation camp.
“Since 2021, videos showing different mahouts in different locations taken at different times beating elephant Joymala (Jeymalyatha) so badly that she screams in pain have surfaced, and her current mahout used pliers to twist her skin even in front of inspectors last week. We can only imagine the abuse that has been happening behind-the-scenes,” said PETA India veterinarian Dr Nithin Krishnegowda.
“Painting and suddenly building a pool, which was still under construction just a few days ago, is simply an exercise to mislead inspectors and reporters, and does not change the fact that this social, intelligent animal is kept in solitary confinement, illegally held in Tamil Nadu and would be severely disturbed from her systematic abuse.
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“If she has been found to be healthy enough to travel, she must be transported to an elephant rescue centre immediately where she can receive specialized care, live unchained and finally be in the company of other elephants,” Dr. Krishnegowda added.
The elephant has been kept in the illegal custody of the Srivilliputhur Nachiyar Thirukovil Temple in Tamil Nadu for over a decade. It is now kept at the nearby Krishnan Kovil temple.
On July 27, 2022, PETA India conducted a veterinary inspection of elephant Joymala.
“The mahout used pliers to painfully twist her skin to control her even in front of inspectors. Numerous ankuses were found in the shed in which she’s chained by two legs for up to 16 hours a day. The pool that appears to have been created purely for public relations purposes was neither completed nor in use,” PETA said.
There are two separate videos of elephant Joymala being beaten so violently that she screams.
The latest video of her being beaten surfaced in June 2022. The beating occurred in the sanctum sanctorum of the Krishnan Kovil temple near Srivilliputhur Nachiyar Thirukovil. Any claims that this is an older video are not substantiated with any proof—what is known as fact is that it surfaced first only in June 2022, it added.
The first video of her being beaten at a rejuvenation camp by a mahout and his assistant surfaced in February 2021. This led Tamil Nadu’s Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments to suspend the mahout involved. However, this did not stop her from being beaten by a new mahout, PETA India mentioned.
Elephant Joymala was reportedly given on a six-month lease to Tamil Nadu from Assam in 2008 and never returned, making her continued use in Tamil Nadu illegal, in violation of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
PETA India contends Joymala poses a threat to her mahout and others around her unless moved to a rescue centre where she can receive specialized care, live unchained and be in the company of other elephants.
“There have been numerous incidents in Tamil Nadu and throughout India in which frustrated, captive elephants killed their mahouts. Examples include Deivanai, who was also from Assam and who killed her mahout at the Subramaniya Swami temple in Madurai; Masini, who is kept at the Samayapuram Mariamman temple in Trichy, and Madhumathi, who was used in a temple festival in Madurai,” PETA India pointed out.