Guwahati, Oct. 1 -- In a first, Sri Lanka's Court of Appeal has accepted an elephant as a petitioner in a case concerning the threat posed to elephants by railway operations.

In its September 10, 2026 judgment in Center for Eco-Cultural Studies and Another v. Hon. Attorney General and Others, CA (Writ) App. No. 318/2025, the court held that the second petitioner, an elephant identified as Elephant X (Elephas maximus maximus), has the locus standi to be a petitioner.

Justice D.F.H. Gunawardhana allowed the Centre for Eco-Cultural Studies, the first petitioner, to represent the elephant as its "next best friend", noting that the animal could not physically approach the court and make an application.

The case arose from a night-time colli...