Shivamogga Jamboo Savari: Scary scenes as howdah elephant Somanna runs amok

The Jamboo Savari procession, held as part of the Dasara celebrations in Shivamogga on Wednesday (October 21), witnessed scary scenes when the elephant carrying the howdah with the idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari ran helter-skelter within minutes of the procession kicking off, leaving the public, elephant caretakers and police personnel in shock.

Somanna, the elephant from the Sakrebailu camp, which was carrying the howdah for the first time during the Dasara procession, had moved about 200 metres from the Kote Anjaneya Swamy Temple on Kote Road when it suddenly turned back. Another elephant, Bahaddur, followed, triggering chaos and confusion among the crowd.

Caretakers and Shivamogga City Corporation staff ran behind the animals to stop them. Somanna ran towards a corner, the howdah slipped off, and the elephant hit a couple of cars and two-wheelers.

The city corporation had brought three elephants, Sagar, Bahaddur and Somanna, from the Sakrebailu camp for the procession. Sagar had carried the howdah for the last six years, but Somanna was chosen for the task on Wednesday (October 21) morning.

The caretakers eventually brought the animals under control. By then, however, the howdah had fallen to the ground and the staff had carried the idol of Chamundeshwari away from the scene.

Superintendent of Police B. Nikhil told reporters that the procession would continue as scheduled, without elephants. “The elephant carrying the howdah ran backwards, creating chaos and tension. Another elephant also followed. A couple of vehicles were damaged. There were no casualties,” he said.

He appealed to the public to take part in the procession to Allama Prabhu Park as per the schedule.