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Agence France-Presse

India’s cricket captain Virat Kohli called on Thursday for a captive elephant that is being mistreated and used for rides at a tourist hotspot to be relocated to a rehabilitation facility.
Kohli’s plea comes after a group of American tourists witnessed eight men violently beating the elephant at the famous Amer Fort in Jaipur last year.
He has written a letter on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India to the state minister of Rajasthan to rescue the elephant, known as “Number 44”.

“As a professional cricketer, I am proud to represent our country, but when I learned about the hateful attack on Number 44 last June, I felt so ashamed,” wrote Kohli, currently on tour in Australia.
“Violence against animals is completely unacceptable, not to mention illegal, and our nation cannot fail elephants this way.
“I beseech you to start helping them by transferring Number 44 to a reputable rehabilitation facility where she can get the care she needs, socialise with others of her kind, and live free from chains, abuse, and fear.”

Kohli’s letter follows PETA India’s complaint to the state’s forestry department, which resulted in a notice being issued to Number 44’s custodian, Wasid Khan, holding him responsible for the abuse.
Tens of thousands of tourists visit Amer Fort, a medieval complex on a hilltop outside Jaipur also known as the Amber Fort, every year and many opt to enter its imposing gates on an elephant.
A report commissioned by the Animal Welfare Board of India early this year revealed that 19 elephants used to ferry visitors were blind or vision impaired while nine others had tuberculosis.
The report also said that the captive elephants were unfit for safaris and that carrying people on their backs endangered both the elephants and tourists alike.
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India

India’s cricket captain Virat Kohli goes to bat for mistreated elephant being used as a tourist attraction in Jaipur

India's Virhat Kohli has spoken out on the treatment of the tourist elephant. Photo: AP

(FILES) In this file photo taken on November 12, 2011 foreign tourists get off elephants after riding them into Amber Fort also known as Amer Fort near Jaipur. - India's cricket captain Virat Kohli called November 29, 2018 for a captive elephant being maltreated and used for tourist rides in a tourist hotspot to be relocated to a rehabilitation facility. (Photo by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP)

(FILES) In this file photo taken on November 12, 2011 foreign tourists ride on elephants into Amber Fort also known as Amer Fort near Jaipur. - India's cricket captain Virat Kohli called November 29, 2018 for a captive elephant being maltreated and used for tourist rides in a tourist hotspot to be relocated to a rehabilitation facility. (Photo by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP)

India’s growing population draws elephants and humans into conflict with deadly consequences on both sides

A mahout sweeping the surroundings of an elephant and a calf about 250km west of Bangalore. Photo: AFP

This photo taken on May 11, 2018 shows an Indian forestry official patting a tamed elephant named Ranjan at the Dubare Elephant Camp in Kodagu District, about 250 kms west of Bangalore. As India's 1.3-billion population grows, people are encroaching into habitats where until now the elephant, not man, has been king, with painful effects for both parties. The Indian government told parliament in 2017 that 1,100 people had been killed in the previous three years. / AFP PHOTO / Manjunath KIRAN / TO GO WITH India-animal-environment-elephants-conservation,FEATURE by Bhuvan BHAGGA

This photo taken on May 10, 2018 shows a signboard put up by the Karnataka Forest Department on the side of a road to warn motorists about the presence of wild elephants around the coffee estates in Kechammana Hosakote village in Hassan District, about 220 kms west of Bangalore. As India's 1.3-billion population grows, people are encroaching into habitats where until now the elephant, not man, has been king, with painful effects for both parties. The Indian government told parliament in 2017 that 1,100 people had been killed in the previous three years. / AFP PHOTO / Manjunath KIRAN / TO GO WITH India-animal-environment-elephants-conservation,FEATURE by Bhuvan BHAGGA

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South Asia

The plea comes after a group of American tourists witnessed eight men violently beating the elephant at the famous Amer Fort in Jaipur last year


Conservation

India’s cricket captain Virat Kohli goes to bat for mistreated elephant being used as a tourist attraction in Jaipur

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}The plea comes after a group of American tourists witnessed eight men violently beating the elephant at the famous Amer Fort in Jaipur last year

The plea comes after a group of American tourists witnessed eight men violently beating the elephant at the famous Amer Fort in Jaipur last year