Maharashtra: What’s cooking in Kolhapur?

It wasn’t just the Jains who set off on a silent march on 3 August — Hindus and Muslims joined too, walking over 45 km from Nandani to Kolhapur to demand the return of Madhuri, an elephant who had recently been shifted to the Vantara animal rescue and rehabilitation centre in Jamnagar, Gujarat.

Madhuri, alias Mahadevi, had lived at the Shri Jinsen Bhattarak Pattacharya Mahaswami Jain Mutt in Nandani for over three decades. The shift, however, apparently isn’t as sudden as it appears. Local leader Raju Shetty claims he was offered Rs 2 crore to facilitate the transfer (it was Shetty who led the March from Nandani village to the Kolhapur collector’s office, where the petition for her return was submitted).

Authorities at the 1,300-year-old Jain temple claimed they, too, were offered financial assistance towards the construction of new buildings. When these allurements failed, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) lodged a complaint with the Bombay High Court, claiming Madhuri was being maltreated.

A high-power committee was constituted by the state government to inspect and report on the temple. The committee found Madhuri to be in good health, but made certain recommendations. One was to modify the cemented floor to natural soil. The other was: she should not live alone. Temple authorities pointed out that Madhuri was taken to the local bazaar every Wednesday, where people fed her and sought her blessings. She was also part of other religious festivals including Ganpati puja.

Elephants from other temples joined her occasionally for the requisite socialising. All this, the committee and the court argued, was not enough. On 16 July, the Bombay High Court ordered her transfer, which was upheld by the Supreme Court on 28 July.

Vantara claimed Madhuri was suffering from prolonged neglect which necessitated her relocation. A report on the Vantara website stated: ‘She is now receiving specialised veterinary treatments, proper nutrition, and enriched living conditions aimed at her physical and mental recovery.’

The intensity of public outrage seems to have taken everyone by surprise. Vantara has promised Madhuri’s immediate return to Kolhapur, where Anant Ambani has offered to set up a rehabilitation centre, which would include hydrotherapy and swimming pools for muscle recovery and joint relaxation, laser therapy units for treating chronic pain, a chain-free night shelter, a natural sand pit to encourage playful behaviour, a 24/7 fully-staffed veterinary care unit and soft rubber flooring.

Vantara’s seemingly altruistic initiative to establish a rehabilitation centre in Maharashtra has raised suspicions. Meanwhile, Maharashtra’s forest minister Ganesh Naik confirmed that Anant Ambani had been invited to inaugurate a proposed sanctuary — tentatively named Suryatara — modelled after Vantara.

Sources also suggest that the Kamalapur Elephant Camp in Gadchiroli district, which houses nine elephants, may be relocated to Jamnagar. Additionally, they claimed that 19 tigers had already been transferred from Maharashtra to Jamnagar. This move was reportedly made possible after the Central government eased regulations governing the interstate transfer of captive animals.

With Vantara being Mukesh Ambani’s son’s pet project, the people’s wrath over Madhuri’s transfer manifested itself through plans to boycott Reliance’s retail shops. Police had to be deployed at Reliance petroleum outlets. And, in a more unnerving move for the Reliance Group, an estimated one-and-a-half lakh Jio mobile phone subscribers ported to other service providers as a mark of protest.

The cumulative efforts had their desired effect. On 5 August, two days after the march, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis announced that the state would appeal to the Supreme Court to review and potentially reverse its decision. Vantara has offered to be a co-petitioner.

While the people seem to have won an unlikely victory against the powerful House of Ambanis, the Reliance Group and the BJP government in Maharashtra, one wonders: what’s so special about this particular temple elephant?

According to the 2011 census, Maharashtra is home to the highest number of Jains in the country. Traditionally BJP supporters, the community has lately complained of a targeted campaign against them. In April 2025, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) demolished part of the 90-year-old Parshvanath Digambar Jain temple in Mumbai’s Vile Parle. Lakhs of Jains took to the streets in protest.

On 31 July, the Bombay High Court ordered the closure of all 51 kabootarkhanas (pigeon houses) in Mumbai. Following protests by the Jains, the order was stayed on 7 August, with the high court lobbing the ball back to the BMC’s court.

Is Madhuri the elephant a pawn in a larger game? Further investigations are awaited.