Former Chief Justice of India Chandrachud Honoured as PETA India’s ‘Most Influential Vegan’ While Starring with Family in Heartwarming Video
For Immediate Release:
09 December 2024
Contact:
Hiraj Laljani; [email protected]
Sanskriti Bansore; [email protected]
Delhi – People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India is naming D. Y. Chandrachud, recently retired Chief Justice of India, as PETA India’s 2024 Most Influential Vegan for being publicly vocal about how his daughters, Priyanka and Mahi, inspired him to eat and live vegan (including by being leather-free).
In continuation of his efforts to share the benefits of vegan living with the public, former Chief Justice Chandrachud, alongside his wife Kalpana Das and their daughters, starred in a new video for PETA India. In it, they share the story behind their compassionate lifestyle, how vegan living is aligned with Indian ethos, and the importance of living kind.
The video can be available upon request.
In the video, former Chief Justice Chandrachud says, “What we eat, what we wear, how we think, how we deal with other individuals should be in a way which is consistent with the right to everyone’s dignity, whether it’s a human being, an animal or a bird. Our Constitution, for instance, says in Article 51A(g), which lays down the fundamental duties of every citizen, to have compassion for every living creature.”
Kalpana Das, his wife and a dedicated advocate for animal rights, adds, “Very often, people don’t realize that animals do have the same feelings. They have pain, they have joy, jealousy, yes, they do have! They strategize.”
“While former Chief Justice Chandrachud is PETA India’s 2024 Most Influential Vegan, the honour goes out to his entire family, and especially youth role models Priyanka and Mahi, whose kindness is inspiring children and adults alike to make compassionate choices,” says PETA India’s Manager of Vegan Projects, Dr. Kiran Ahuja. “Their family’s commitment to kindness serves as a call to action for others to consider living vegan for animals, their health, and for the sake of our planet.”
In the meat, leather, egg, and dairy sectors, billions of animals endure extreme confinement and harsh treatment every year. Egg-laying hens are cramped into cages so small they can’t spread their wings, cows and buffaloes are forcibly separated from their calves, male piglets are castrated without painkillers, and fish are yanked out of the water and crushed, suffocated, or cut open and gutted, all while they’re still conscious. Animals used for leather often have their throats slit while they are still conscious.
In addition to sparing up to hundreds of animals every year from a miserable life and terrifying death, each individual who goes vegan reduces their risk of suffering from cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and obesity, and dramatically shrinks their carbon footprint. According to the United Nations, animal agriculture is responsible for nearly a fifth of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions and a global shift towards eating vegan is necessary to combat the worst effects of the climate catastrophe. Bovine leather is also ranked as the most polluting material in fashion.
Past recipients of PETA India’s Most Influential Vegan Award include spiritual leader and humanitarian Brahmarishi Mohanji and Vedanta teacher Acharya Prashant.
PETA India – whose motto reads, “Animals are not ours to experiment on, eat, wear, use for entertainment, or abuse in any other way” – opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETAIndia.com or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
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