At Red Fort play, elephant a jumbo threat to VIPS

IN A LETTER TO THE PLAY ORGANISERS, DELHI’S CHIEF WILDLIFE WARDEN SAID THAT UNTRAINED JUMBOS MAY BE AGGRESSIVE

NEWDELHI: The Delhi forest department will not allow the use of an elephant, named Lakshmi, in a much-publicised play on Maratha King Shivaji that starts playing Friday at Delhi’s historic Red Fort, because it fears for the safety of the audience, which includes VIPS.

Titled, Raja Shiv Chatrapati, the play, originally in Marathi, has been staged several hundred times since it was first staged in 1985, and its appeal includes the use of elaborate sets and props including live camels, horses, even an elephant.

The Hindi version of the play is being staged in the Red Fort, from April 6-10 under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture.

In a letter to the play organisers, Ishwar Singh, Delhi’s chief wildlife warden said that untrained elephants like Lakshmi might become aggressive and pose a “serious threat to people and VIP’S security.”

Home minister Rajnath Singh and Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan have confirmed their presence at the inaugural show, according to the organisers.

Raja Chhatrapati Mahanatya Ayojan Samiti, which is organising the play, requested the Department of Forest and Wildlife on March 27 to allow them to hire horses, camels and an elephant from Delhi and use them in the play.

“We wanted to bring the animals from Pune but due to complications in (securing) permission, we decided to hire them from Delhi,” says Sri Ram Joshi, a member of the organising committee.

Transporting animals across state borders is difficult in India.