Both the elephants could be seen charging and chasing each other in the viral video
A video of an elephant going berserk and attacking another elephant at the Tharakkal temple festival in Kerala has emerged on social media. The incident happened around 10.30 pm on Friday when the elephant, Guruvayur Ravikrishnan, carrying the 'Ammathiruvady' deity, lost control and attacked the other elephant, Puthupally Arjunan.
The video shows the elephant charging at another elephant, Puthupally Arjunan, carrying the 'Arattupuzha' deity, and chasing it for almost one kilometre. The elephant's mahout Sreekumar narrowly escaped after the elephant made three attempts to attack him.
The incident caused panic among the devotees and many people attending the festival suffered injuries. People carried by the elephants sustained injuries too and those seated atop the elephants tried to escape but fell and got hurt.
Both the elephants could be seen charging and chasing each other in the viral video. Both the elephants were later brought under control by the elephant squad, reported local news outlet Mathrubhumi.
The incident comes at a time when the issue of human-animal conflicts continues to haunt Kerala. Nine people have been reported killed in Kerala due to attacks by wild animals.
Recently, a 62-year-old woman was attacked and killed by a wild elephant in a forest area near Athirappally. In February, a 42-year-old man died after being attacked by a wild elephant that strayed into a human settlement near Mananthavad.