Where did the missing circus elephants go? Court gives Bengal 6 weeks to trace them

4 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jul 1, 2026 01:39 PM IST

The Calcutta High Court was hearing an NGO’s plea, filed in 2018, seeking the return of 24 captive elephants that were ‘illegally and unlawfully’ transported out of West Bengal. (AI-generated image)

The Calcutta High Court recently directed the West Bengal government to disclose the whereabouts of 21 captive elephants that were transported out of the state, including two circus elephants, whose status remains unknown at present.

A division bench of Justices Ravi Krishan Kapur and Arindam Mukherjee passed the order in response to a plea filed in 2018 by an animal welfare organisation that alleged that the elephants were taken out of the state illegally and sought their return.

The court, therefore, directed the Chief Conservator of Forests and Chief Wildlife Warden, Kolkata, to give full particulars as to what steps have been taken to identify and bring back those elephants in terms of the order dated July 19, 2019.

According to the petitioners, details obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act in June 2018 from the office of the principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife) and chief wildlife warden revealed that 24 captive elephants registered in West Bengal were outside the state.

The communication further disclosed that three elephants belonged to Nataraj Circus and two to Famous Circus. The NGO argued that three of the elephants were illegally moved to an ashram in Gopalganj, Bihar, where a mahant claimed to be their owner.

The court noted that the dispute now survives only in relation to the two elephants of Famous Circus, which “are not traceable and have been illegally transported without permission.” It also recorded that the remaining 19 elephants had initially been allowed to leave Bengal under temporary permission for 11 months, while the issue relating to the three Nataraj Circus elephants had already been resolved after they were shifted to Gorumara Wildlife Park in the state.

Justices Ravi Krishan Kapur and Arindam Mukherjee directed the authorities to furnish complete particulars regarding the whereabouts of the two elephants formerly with Famous Circus.

Court seeks state’s response

Observing that considerable time had lapsed since the plea was filed, the bench directed the chief conservator of forests (wildlife) and chief wildlife warden, Kolkata, to furnish complete particulars regarding the exact whereabouts of the two elephants formerly with Famous Circus, as well as the present status of the other 19 elephants.

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“In view of the long passage of time since filing of the writ petition, this application…stands disposed of by directing the State of West Bengal and more particularly the Chief Conserver of Forests (Wildlife) & Chief Wildlife Warden, Kolkata, being the alleged contemnor no.2 to forthwith respond to the query of the petitioners giving full particulars of the exact whereabouts of the 2 elephants which at one point of time were in the custody of the Famous Circus and the present status of the balance 19 elephants,” the order read.

The court further directed the state to provide details of the measures taken to identify and bring back the elephants in terms of an earlier order dated July 19, 2019. After receiving the information, the petitioners were granted liberty to take necessary steps in accordance with the law.

The court directed the State, particularly the Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden, to respond to the petitioners’ queries within six weeks of receiving the order and to furnish the latest information available with the authorities.

“The State respondents and more particularly, the Chief Conserver of Forests (Wildlife) & Chief Wildlife Warden, Kolkata, being the alleged contemnor no.2 is directed to respond to the above query within a period of 6 weeks from the date of receipt of such order,” the order read.

Ashish Shaji is a Senior Sub-Editor at The Indian Express, where he specializes in legal journalism. Combining a formal education in law with years of editorial experience, Ashish provides authoritative coverage and nuanced analysis of court developments and landmark judicial decisions for a national audience.

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