After Killing of Mahout, ISKCON Mayapur Elephants Sent to Vantara for Rehabilitation, Following PETA India Campaign
Following the crushing of a mahout to death at ISKCON Mayapur in West Bengal in April 2024 by frustrated captive elephant Bishnupriya, elephants Bishnupriya and Lakshmipriya of ISKCON Mayapur have been transferred to the Vantara elephant sanctuary in Jamnagar, where they will live unchained, begin to recover from the captivity-induced mental trauma they’ve endured and live in the company of other rescued elephants. Bishnupriya had also left a mahout disabled in 2022.
The approval to shift these elephants, issued by the High–Powered Committee of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, was based on a request from ISKCON Mayapur after PETA India urged ISKCON Mayapur to release their live elephants to a reputable sanctuary.
Immediately after the mahout was killed, PETA India had written to H.H. Jayapataka Swami, Co-Director of ISKCON Mayapur, requesting ISKCON to use mechanical elephants in rituals and processions instead and to permit elephants Bishnupriya and Lakshmipriya to be rehabilitated. Bishnupriya was brought to ISKCON in Mayapur in 2010, while Lakshmipriya was brought in 2007. The female elephants were used for festivals and rituals at ISKCON Mayapur.
Welcoming the rehabilitation of both the elephants, PETA India Director of Advocacy Projects Khushboo Gupta says, “We commend ISKCON for taking compassionate steps to rehabilitate elephants Bishnupriya and Lakshmipriya to Vantara and are hopeful other temples and institutions keeping captive elephants will also be inspired to send them for rehabilitation. Today, mechanical elephants can perform all the necessary functions, allowing real elephants to be rehabilitated or to remain in their jungle homes.”
PETA India ignited the sympathetic movement of replacing live elephants in temples at the beginning of 2023. Now, at least twelve mechanical elephants are used in temples across south India, of which PETA India was involved with donating seven in recognition of the temples’ decisions to never own or hire live elephants. These mechanical elephants are now used to conduct ceremonies at their temples in a safe and cruelty-free manner.
Mechanical elephants are 3-meter-tall and weigh 800 kilograms. They are made with rubber, fiber, metal, mesh, foam, and steel and run on five motors. A mechanical elephant looks, feels, and can be used like a real elephant. It can shake its head, move its ears and eyes, swish its tail, lift its trunk, and even spray water. They can be climbed upon, and a seat can be affixed on the back. They can be operated simply by plugging and playing with electricity and taken through the streets. They are mounted on a wheelbase, allowing them to be moved and pushed around for rituals and processions.
Elephants are extremely clever, active, and gregarious wild animals. In captivity, they are trained to be used in processions by force, including beatings and the use of weapons to cause suffering. Many elephants held captive in temples and other places suffer from extremely painful foot problems and leg wounds due to being chained to concrete for hours on end. Most are denied adequate food, water, veterinary care, and any semblance of a natural life. Under these hellish conditions, many elephants become intensely frustrated and lash out, sometimes killing mahouts or other humans. According to the Heritage Animal Task Force, captive elephants killed 526 people in Kerala in a 15-year period.
