One person arrested in connection with death of pregnant elephant

Policemen and onlookers standing on the banks of the Velliyar River in Palakkad district of Kerala state as a dead wild elephant (C), which was pregnant, is retrieved following injuries caused when locals fed the elephant a pineapple filled with firecrack

One person has been arrested in the case relating to the death of a pregnant wild elephant in Kerala, the state forest department said on Friday. "KFD has zeroed in on the culprits and recorded the first arrest in the wild elephant death case", the department said in a tweet. The incident had triggered a national outrage.

Forest department sources had said yesterday that three people were under the scanner of the joint investigation team of Kerala police and their personnel and a search was on for two more people.

The 15-year-old elephant is suspected to have consumed a pineapple filled with powerful fire crackers, which exploded in its mouth in the Silent Valley forest.

The pachyderm died in the Velliyar River a week later on May 27.

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