From a BBC Article: Bangladesh's critically endangered wild elephants have received a court order banning their adoption and protecting them from exploitation. Animal rights groups welcomed the High Court suspension of all licences, so young Asian elephants can no longer be captured and taken into captivity. Some of the animals have been used for begging, circuses or street shows. There are now only about 200 of the elephants in Bangladesh, with about half of those living in captivity. The country used to be one of the major homes for the Asian elephant but poaching and habitat loss has caused a marked decrease in their numbers.
I wonder how many Asiatic elephants are in local private hands now. Protecting the wild population from reducing any further, the legislation falls short of illegal capture and confiscating individuals acquired this way and enable a rewilding program to take root.
