Kerala HC seeks govt. response on plea for probe into ivory found at Mohanlal’s residence

Actor Mohanlal was found in illegal possession of four tusks

October 16, 2019 12:46 am | Updated 09:29 am IST - Kochi

Kochi, Kerala, 09/07/2018: Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA) President Mohanlal addresses the media, in Kochi on July 09, 2018. 
Photo:H.Vibhu.

Kochi, Kerala, 09/07/2018: Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA) President Mohanlal addresses the media, in Kochi on July 09, 2018. Photo:H.Vibhu.

A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Tuesday directed the Kerala government to file a statement in response to a plea for a court-monitored probe by a special team into the grant of ownership certificates for two pairs of ivory tusks in the possession of actor Mohanlal.

The Bench comprising Chief Justice S. Manikumar and Justice C.K. Abbul Rehim passed the directive on a public interest litigation petition filed by James Mathew, a retired forest officer from Pathanamthitta.

According to him, the two pairs of tusks and 13 artefacts made of ivory were seized from the residence of the actor in Kochi in 2012. However, no case was registered for illegally possessing the ivory artefacts as the actor did not have a certificate of possession as mandated under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 at the time of the seizure.

Later, the government issued a possession certificate to him for the two pair of ivories.

The petitioner contended that the government’s decision to grant ownership certificate was in violation of the WP Act.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.