“The degree of cruelty and pain the monkey has gone through is beyond words. We have all been having sleepless nights after we saw the body of the monkey. Extremely disturbed.”
This was the reaction posted on Facebook by Shravan Krishnan, an animal rights activist while the body of a female monkey was being interred at Vellore’s Christian Medical College.
On November 19 around 12:30 pm, four medical students from the college used a blanket to catch a female monkey who had entered their hostel room. What followed was a horrifying act of inhumanity. “They tied her hands and started abusing and torturing her by beating her with sticks and belts, broke her legs, jaws and finally put a rod up her anus and killed her,” explained Krishnan in the post.
Warning: This video contains graphic content that some may find disturbing
The incident came to light when Mumbai-based activist Meet Ashar received an anonymous call about the incident. The informer said that the sweepers had buried the 11-12 month old monkey behind the Bagyam Men’s hostel mess. Ashar passed on this information to four animal activists, including Krishan, in Chennai. The excavation of the body has left them traumatised.
“I am still in shock of what I saw and still not out of it. I have never seen this kind of brutal murder in my 16 years of animal activism.”, expressed Anthony Rubin, one of the activists, in a Facebook post. “I asked few of my friends who are doctors if they were taught compassion as a lesson in their college term all of them said no.”
Earlier in July, a video of two medical students from Chennai flinging a dog from terrace caused a furore on social media. They were charged with fines of Rs. 50 and were later suspended from the college.
The principal of Christian Medical College has told The Newsminute that the students were suspended after an internal committee conducted a preliminary inquiry. An FIR has been lodged against the students and a case has been booked under IPC 429 and Wildlife protection act of 1972.
The disturbing images and video shared on Facebook has angered many on the internet, and they are demanding stricter punishment.
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