Mob kills female elephant with flaming spear in ‘revenge’ attack in India

The use of fireballs to drive away elephants is banned in India

The death of an adult female elephant in India has sparked an outcry after a mob of locals fired flaming spears and spiked iron rods at the animal while chasing it away following the death of an elderly person in an elephant attack.

Officials said the elephant died shortly after the attack from locals in Jhargram in the eastern state of West Bengal on Thursday, leading to questions about rising human-elephant conflict.

A viral video of the attack showed dozens of locals chasing a herd of tuskers with massive flamethrowers in their hands on Thursday. Another video posted on social media showed the attacked elephant falling to the ground crying in pain from an open wound likely made by an iron rod. It also showed several iron nails on the injured elephant’s lower back.

The elephant succumbed to its injuries eight hours after the attack, local activists said, citing efforts by the forest department to rehabilitate it, reported national daily The Times of India.

Police officials have registered a first information report (FIR) – one of the first steps in any police procedure in India – against unknown people and said an investigation was underway to identify the people who attacked the elephant.

At least six elephants, including two calves, were targeted in Jhargram’s Raj College colony after one of the males of the herd attacked and killed a local in the early hours of Thursday.

In a bid to control the situation, the forest department called on local people tasked with chasing away animals using torches or percussion instruments, known as the hulla (noise) team. At least 35 people appeared with massive flaming torches and hunted down the elephants. Targeting of wildlife animals by using and throwing fireballs is banned under India’s wildlife protection law.

The team also darted one of the male elephants with a tranquiliser spear on Thursday afternoon. Indian wildlife activists and animal rights groups have slammed the incident and the killing of the elephant.

“This is against the law (Wildlife Protection) Act, 1972. The Supreme Court of India has completely banned, outlawed the use and throwing of fireballs for driving elephants... and for what it is worth, I am the petitioner,” said Prerna Singh Bindra, a wildlife conservationist who challenged the use of fireballs in taming wild animals in India’s Supreme Court in 2018.

She added: “We claim to protect, worship elephants – but we can’t provide them habitat, can’t give them space, either physically, or in our hearts.”