JAIPUR: An elephant polo match scheduled to be held on Saturday at the city's Rambagh polo ground has invited the wrath of animal activists.

Sporting elephant masks and dressed like jail-birds on Friday, activists of animal protection groups like PETA, GSPCA, Ranjith For Animals and RAW among others raised placards to protest against the polo match which is like watching traditional horseback polo in slow motion.

Ironically, the event sponsored by Cartier the target of activist ire is a fund raiser organised by the London-based Elephant Family, which works for elephant welfare, and Help In Suffering (HIS) of Jaipur. The money raised is to go towards protecting and saving the pachyderm.

The animal welfare groups have criticised the scheduled match saying it was cruel to elephants. The groups, which raised banners like 'Cartier: Time to Stop Elephant Cruelty' outside Central Park, want the sponsor to stop the abuse of the animal.

Though animal activists are up in arms, government officials see no reason to stop the match. In fact, the Rajasthan government's tourism department also organises elephant polo matches in the Pink City during its annual elephant festival at the city's Chaughan Stadium.