Elephant runs amok at temple festival in Kerala

One of the three elephants brought for a temple festival near Nooranad in this coastal district turned violent the previous night, injuring its mahout and damaging several vehicles, police said on Thursday.

The jumbo was later tranquilised by wildlife officials and removed from the area in the morning.

The mahout is currently undergoing treatment at the Kottayam medical college, an officer of Nooranad police station



said.

The incident occurred between 8.30 pm and 9 pm on Wednesday as the elephant was being taken to the Thirumanimangalam Mahadevar temple as part of the shrine’s festival, the officer said.

The elephant suddenly became violent and threw away its mahout, creating panic among the locals of the area, he said.

The jumbo then ran around the area toppling vehicles it found parked on the roadside, damaging several of them.