Langur Illegally Kept Captive for Weeks Rescued by PETA India and UP Forest Department

For Immediate Release:

19 May 2022

Contact:

Hiraj Laljani; [email protected]

Sanskriti Bansore; [email protected]

Lucknow – Following a complaint from a local resident about a grey langur, commonly known as a Hanuman langur, who was illegally kept tied in a residential society, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India urgently worked with Uttar Pradesh forest officials to rescue the primate. The langur was found tied by the neck to a tree under the scorching sun without food or water, reportedly for over two weeks. The desperate animal was found wandering in the society premises in search of food, which led residents to tie the animal up.

Following the rescue and after a veterinarian declared the langur to be healthy, the forest department released the animal into a forested area, which is the natural habitat for the species. The forest officials also warned the society residents to refrain from taking matters into their own hands and about potential legal consequences and asked them to contact the forest department if such a situation arises in future.

Photographs and video of the langur are available upon request.

“It’s vital that smart, social monkeys remain with their friends and families in nature for their well-being and that they not be held captive,” says PETA India Emergency Response Assistant Kabir Bhanu Das. “PETA India encourages all kind people to keep their eyes open and report any cases of animal abuse, health emergencies, or illegal wildlife trading to relevant authorities, such as the police or forest department.”

In the forests where they belong, Hanuman langurs live in groups of up to 100. They spend much of their time playing, grooming, and engaging in other social activities. Family members are always on the lookout for danger and quickly run to the defence of their loved ones.

PETA India points out that the Indian gray langurs (Semnopithecus ajax) are protected under Schedule II of The Wild Life (Protection) Act (WPA), 1972, and that exploiting them for profit or keeping them in captivity as “pets” is both morally wrong and punishable by up to seven years in prison and a fine of at least Rs 10,000 under the WPA, 1972.

To report cruelty to animals or emergencies involving them, please call PETA India on (0) 98201 22602.

PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way” – opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETAIndia.com or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.

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