Guwahati: A five-year-old elephant seized in Assam’s Golaghat district has become the centre of a dispute over its ownership, paperwork, and movement between forest divisions, after conservationists said the animal was found without valid documents and its microchip failed to match any registered record.
The elephant was seized on Friday after residents complained to the Jamuguri Range office that it was being used to solicit money from devotees and was causing disturbances at Sri Sri Athkheliya Namghar. A forest team from the Giladhari Beat Office brought the elephant to the Jamuguri Range Office following the complaint.
Documents promised, then the elephant moved
Sources said the two mahouts present told officials the elephant belonged to one Asraf Ali and that ownership papers were with him. When the Beat Officer contacted Ali, a woman identifying herself as his daughter said he was away and would bring the documents the next day.
Instead, the elephant was shifted to Golaghat on Saturday morning — before any paperwork appeared. Local conservationist Bedanta Gogoi told Northeast Now that a Jamuguri Range official told him the transfer was ordered by Golaghat DFO Mukut Ch Das.
“This is very mysterious and suspicious,” Gogoi said, questioning why the elephant was moved when the owner and a veterinarian were expected to arrive with documents. He also flagged the presence of Hindi-speaking mahouts from Uttar Pradesh rather than local handlers, calling it a possible sign of an effort to eventually move the elephant out of Assam.
“Why is a UP mahout being engaged when Assam has so many experienced mahouts? This raises the suspicion that there could be an attempt to eventually send the elephant outside Assam,” Gogoi alleged.
Sources allege Ali has previously been involved in transporting elephants out of state and has ties to a senior Forest Department official who backed a plan to relocate this elephant as well.
Microchip discrepancy
A scan with a Trovan reader returned a fresh, unregistered microchip number rather than a previously logged identification code, sources privy to the development said.
One source suggested this could point to falsified documentation, possibly an attempt to pass the elephant off as legally captive.
A local conservationist claimed the elephant may have been recently captured from the wild and is not fully trained, which could explain its inconsistent response to commands of the mahouts.
A transfer without a paper trail?
The elephant’s journey from the Digboi forest division in Tinsukia district to Golaghat raises a separate legal question. Under the Captive Elephants (Transfer or Transport) Rules, 2024, moving a captive elephant between forest divisions requires clearance from the competent wildlife authority, including the Chief Wildlife Warden where applicable. No such approval has surfaced so far, and its absence — if confirmed — would point to a clear procedural breach.
“This raises a fundamental question: if the elephant was moved from the Digboi division to the Golaghat division, where are the transfer permissions and supporting documents? If no such approval exists, the circumstances surrounding the elephant’s movement require a detailed inquiry,” said a conservationist requesting anonymity.
Unanswered questions
The Assam Forest Department has yet to address several key points: Who legally owns the elephant, and where are the ownership and transfer documents? Was permission obtained for its move from Digboi to Golaghat? When and where was it microchipped, and is that number officially registered? Why was it relocated to Golaghat before ownership papers were produced? Was there a plan to move it outside Assam?
Golaghat DFO Mukut Ch Das did not respond to repeated calls from Northeast Now seeking comment.
With the department silent, the central question remains open: who actually owns this elephant, and how did it travel from Digboi to Golaghat with its paper trail nowhere in sight?