Wildlife Protection Act provisions cannot be invoked against actor Mohanlal for possessing ivories, Kerala government tells High Court (India)

S
stenews
Wed, Dec 7, 2022 5:39 PM

Wildlife Protection Act provisions cannot be invoked against actor Mohanlal
for possessing ivories, Kerala government tells High Court (India)
The Hindu
December 7, 2022

The Kerala High Court on Tuesday reserved its order on criminal revision
petitions filed by actor Mohanlal and the State government challenging the
order of the Perumbavoor Judicial First Class Magistrate Court dismissing
the plea of the assistant public prosecutor to withdraw the case registered
against him under the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act for
illegally possessing ivories.

When the petitions came up for hearing, the State government submitted that
the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act could not be invoked against
the actor as no elephants were killed for extracting the tusks.

The government further submitted that the tusks possessed by the actor
belonged to a captive elephant that had died naturally. The tusks were
neither removed after killing the captive elephant nor were they extracted
after killing any wild elephant. In fact, the Act was enacted to protect
wild animals. Therefore, its provisions were not applicable in the case.

The actor contended that the magistrate had issued the order without
considering the legal and factual aspects of the case and without
application of mind.

The State government also said in its petition that the assistant public
prosecutor had filed the application for withdrawal of the case after duly
applying his free mind and careful consideration of the materials placed
before him.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/wildlife-protection-act-provisions-cannot-be-invoked-against-actor-mohanlal-for-possessing-ivories-kerala-government-tells-high-court/article66230710.ece

Wildlife Protection Act provisions cannot be invoked against actor Mohanlal for possessing ivories, Kerala government tells High Court (India) The Hindu December 7, 2022 The Kerala High Court on Tuesday reserved its order on criminal revision petitions filed by actor Mohanlal and the State government challenging the order of the Perumbavoor Judicial First Class Magistrate Court dismissing the plea of the assistant public prosecutor to withdraw the case registered against him under the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act for illegally possessing ivories. When the petitions came up for hearing, the State government submitted that the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act could not be invoked against the actor as no elephants were killed for extracting the tusks. The government further submitted that the tusks possessed by the actor belonged to a captive elephant that had died naturally. The tusks were neither removed after killing the captive elephant nor were they extracted after killing any wild elephant. In fact, the Act was enacted to protect wild animals. Therefore, its provisions were not applicable in the case. The actor contended that the magistrate had issued the order without considering the legal and factual aspects of the case and without application of mind. The State government also said in its petition that the assistant public prosecutor had filed the application for withdrawal of the case after duly applying his free mind and careful consideration of the materials placed before him. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/wildlife-protection-act-provisions-cannot-be-invoked-against-actor-mohanlal-for-possessing-ivories-kerala-government-tells-high-court/article66230710.ece