Death of Overworked, Dehydrated Animal Angers Film Star
Mumbai -- Rising film star, and granddaughter of film legend Suchitra Sen, and daughter of actress Moon Moon Sen, Riya Sen has sent the following letter to Mayor Harishwar Patil asking that he immediately take action to enforce a special notification issued under the Bombay Police Act on April 17, 1998 making it illegal to keep horses on the beach.
Sen penned a letter to Mayor Patil after finding a horse named Rajiv, collapsed from exhaustion on the side of the road. Rajiv, who was dehydrated, emaciated, and had sores all over his body, died several days after being rescued.
Rajiv is just one of many horses forced to give rides under the hot sun at the beach. The horses are made to run fast and are worked for hours without any breaks for cooling down or drinking water. Horses suffering from heat stress and dehydration can die in just a few hours.
Carriage horses also routinely suffer at the hands of untrained drivers who refuse to recognize lameness or do not seek veterinary care or remove an injured or sick horse from service for a few days.
"If we see cruelty that we have the power to stop and do nothing, we all share the blame," says Sen. "Tourists should refuse to be ‘taken for a ride’, and the law written to protect horses from this abuse must be enforced".
A copy of Riya Sen’s letter is enclosed. For more information please visit www.PETAIndia.com
