Elephant calf found in Bandarban was stoned to death

Published : Sunday, 5 April, 2026 at 6:39 PM Count : 18

Post mortem report showed that an elephant calf, found dead in an illegal fish enclosure inside a reserve forest in Naikhongchhari upazila of Bandarban, had died from being hit by stones.

The three-month-old calf had multiple injury marks on its body.

The report, prepared on April 2 by veterinary surgeon Dr Md Mostafizur Rahman of Dulahazara Safari Park in Cox’s Bazar, said the calf suffered brain hemorrhage due to stone blows.

It also noted that infections caused from injuries could have led to septicemia, which may have caused its death.

The calf’s body was recovered on Thursday afternoon and buried after the post-mortem under the Rajarkul Range of the Cox’s Bazar South Forest Division.

Abiuz Zaman, ranger of Rajarkul Range, told that preliminary findings suggest miscreants threw stones at the calf, eventually killing it. Three suspects have already been identified in this connection.

Despite confirmation of the cause of death, no case has yet been filed due to a jurisdictional dispute between the Naikhongchhari Range in Lama and the Rajarkul Range under the Cox’s Bazar South Forest Division.

The calf’s death triggered a heartbreaking scene, as an adult elephant pair stayed beside the body for three days, apparently mourning.

Forest officials said that although the site falls within Naikhongchhari upazila of Bandarban, it is administratively under the Rajarkul Range.

According to local residents and forest officials, one Mong Becha Marma has long been running a fish enclosure at the foot of a hill inside the reserve forest.

In the 2023–24 and 2024–25 fiscal years, the Cox’s Bazar South Forest Division carried out afforestation on around 60 hectares surrounding the enclosure. However, the illegal structure was not evicted for unknown reasons.

Ranger Abiuz Zaman said the enclosure owner claimed the land as his own and said the forest department had previously measured it.

Repeated attempts to contact Mong Becha Marma over phone were unsuccessful, as his number was found switched off.

A forest guard of Naikhongchhari Range, requesting anonymity, said mobile network coverage is weak in the area where Marma lives.

Abiuz Zaman said that a case will be filed after the boundary issue between the two divisions is resolved. He explained that there may be confusion over whether the area was in Lama or Naikhongchhari.

But Naikhongchhari Range Officer Tanvir Khalil Chowdhury said it was unlikely that the site falls under his jurisdiction.

FP/MI