After picture of monkey tied to car bonnet goes viral, authorities demand explanation from car owner
The picture uploaded by Unnati Sinha
Four days after the picture of a monkey tied to a moving car near Chembur went viral on the internet, authorities have sought an explanation from the tourist car operator who owns the vehicle.
Santosh Kank, Range Forest Officer, told DNA, “The company has been sent a notice to explain as to why the monkey was tied on the moving car. The owner of the car will have to be present at our office within two days, else further action will be taken,”
According to the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, monkey are protected under Schedule II and Sections 2, 8, 9, 11, 40, 41, 43, 48, 51, 61, and 62 of the IPC.
Per these sections, anyone owning, trading, buying, selling or hiring monkey can face three-year-jail term or fine or both.
The picture of the monkey, tied with a rope and sitting on the edge of the car’s bonnet, was uploaded by Unnati Sinha on Monday.
Recalling the incident, the 23-year-old told the daily, “At 8 pm on February 13, I was near the Western Express Highway junction signal near Chembur, when a white car with a ‘T’ symbol on it stopped beside mine. I was stunned to see that a monkey was tied with a rope and was on the bonnet of the car.”
“The monkey looked very scared, it could barely sit. The minute the car moved a little, it would lose its balance. I tried talking to the three men in the car, telling them to take the monkey inside, but they just laughed at me. I couldn’t follow the car, but took down the car number and clicked pictures of them,” she added.
Later, she got in touch with Pawan Sharma, the founder of animal welfare NGO Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW).
Sharma, with the help of his volunteers, tried to search for the car in the area, but to no avail. He then wrote to forest officials and the RTO, who took cognisance of the matter and sent the tourist car operator a notice.
