Minister in-charge of Mysuru district V. Srinivas Prasad sought to play down the Forest Department’s refusal to spare Dasara elephant Balarama for the coronation ceremony of Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar at the palace here on Thursday.
“I would have got them the Dasara elephant had they contacted me”, Mr. Prasad told reporters on Thursday after attending the coronation ceremony.
He said the Forest Department, as a rule, had turned down a request from the royal family for the elephant. Dasara elephants can be used only for State events and not a private event like the coronation as the Forest Department had cited, Mr. Prasad added.
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“But, there have been occasions when the government and the royal family had cooperated with each other”, he said, recalling the talks between the government and the royal family over the sparing of the golden howdah for the Dasara procession earlier.
“Had they contacted me, I would have ensured that an elephant is spared for the occasion”, Mr. Prasad added.