Kerala High Court cancels Mohanlal’s Ivory ownership certificates, calls them ‘Illegal and Void’

Kerala High Court cancels Mohanlal’s Ivory ownership certificates, calls them ‘Illegal and Void’

In a significant blow to Malayalam superstar Mohanlal, the Kerala High Court has ruled that the ivory ownership certificates granted to him by the state government are illegal and unenforceable. The decision was delivered by a division bench comprising Justice AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Jobin Sebastian, which also nullified the government orders issued in January and April 2016 by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Wildlife.

The court declared the certificates and accompanying orders “void” but made a key clarification — the state government can still issue a fresh notification under Section 44 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, if it wishes to provide the actor with legal ownership and protection under the law. This means the door isn’t completely shut for Mohanlal, though any future decision will require strict adherence to the Act’s provisions.

The ruling stems from public interest litigations filed by James Mathew and Paulose, who alleged that the certificates had been granted through corruption and collusion to regularize ivory that was illegally possessed. Their petition questioned the government’s motive behind legitimizing items that should have remained under seizure.

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The controversy has its roots in a 2012 Income Tax raid at Mohanlal’s Kochi residence, where officials found two pairs of elephant tusks. Since the actor did not have the mandatory ownership certificate at the time, a case was registered under Section 50 of the Wildlife Protection Act. Mohanlal later maintained that the ivory was legally purchased and subsequently sought regularization through official channels. In 2016, he received ownership certificates from the government—documents that now stand invalidated by the court.

The matter resurfaced in 2019 when Mohanlal requested the government to withdraw the criminal proceedings against him. Although the state initially moved to drop the case, a Judicial Magistrate in 2023 rejected that move, keeping the legal process alive. The Kerala High Court later sent the issue back for reconsideration, which ultimately led to today’s ruling.