The owner's reaction to his elephant's death is: B. The owner is angry but helpless to do anything about it
Orwell describes it himself: "Afterwards, of course, there were endless discussions about the shooting of the elephant. The owner was furious, but he was only an Indian and could do nothing. Besides, legally I had done the right thing, for a mad elephant has to be killed, like a mad dog, if its owner fails to control it."