Violent protests rock Pulpally in Kerala’s Wayanad after third elephant attack death in a month

A dawn-to-dusk hartal called by all major political parties in Kerala’s Wayanad district on Saturday, to demand a lasting solution to the escalating threat from wild animals, took a violent turn in Pulpally, 30 km from the district headquarters of Kalpetta. Third death in a month Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has ordered a high-level ministerial meeting in Wayanad on February 20 to finalise measures to mitigate human-wildlife conflict in the district. The situation has prompted Congress leader and Wayanad MP, Rahul Gandhi, to cut short his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Uttar Pradesh to visit the kin of the three persons recently killed by wild animals in the district. Later, Wayanad District Magistrate A. Devaki and District panchayat members met the victim’s family and promised an immediate solatium of ₹10 lakh, along with a recommendation to the government to provide the remaining amount.