“The elephant might have died due to bullet shots. But, the exact cause of death would be known after a post mortem. We were unable to go ahead with the formalities as herds of elephants guarded the deceased elephant,”said forest officials.

According to sources, the herd was seen in the afternoon on the village outskirts. The herd might have come from the national park. Some people might have opened fire at the elephants to prevent them from entering the village.

A few people grew suspicious on seeing the herd behaving in a peculiar manner and guarding the dead one. They immediately informed the forest officials who rushed to the spot.

Several people started rushing towards the outskirts after the news spread. Some of people them offered pooja to the deceased elephant after the herd went away. It was a heart rendering scenes. All other elephants were in great disappointment and shed tears.

They were making strange sounds to express their grief for their departed mate. The villagers alleged that a few miscreants regularly open fire at the elephants leading to such incident. All elephants in and around the area will be no more if such incidents continue.  Hence, the forest officials should take some steps to prevent such incidents, they urged.