Justice for Lakshmi

A petition on Change.org  has been filed by an animal lover to rusticate the four medical students who allegedly abused and killed a young female monkey (female bonnet macaque ) at the Christian Medical College hostel, Vellore, on November 19.

Hundreds of people signed and shared the petition within minutes of its posting. Another hashtag #justiceforlakshmi to give momentum to the campaign of cruelty against animal. “We have named the monkey Lakshmi,” said animal activist Shravan Krishna, who along with Dinesh Baba, Antony Rubin and Nishanth Nichu went to the spot and retrieved the carcass of the monkey that was buried by the college staff. 

The monkey had reportedly entered the room of one of these students while they were out. She is said to have  created a havoc and the students wanted to teach her a ‘lesson’ when they returned. “When we found the body, we saw that her hands were tied and there was also a rope around her neck. From the looks of the wound, it seemed that she was brutally beaten with sticks and belts. Her leg was broken and if that was not enough, they inserted a rod inside her anus,” said Nishanth. The team had immediately posted the pictures of the dead animal and the pictures were only a testimony of what the monkey had gone through. 

An FIR was filed against Jaspar Samuel Sahoo, Rohit Kumar Yenukotti, Arun Loui Sasikumar and Alex Chekalayil,who were immediately suspended from the college. In fact, it was the students who tipped-off the activists. According to sources who were present at the location, the monkey was put on display, which was a dreadful sight to watch, so the staff and the students decided to bury the animal. 

“The students of the hostel formed a group and contacted an activist from Mumbai, who forwarded the message to us in Chennai and we reached for the spot the next day,” said Nishanth. He further added, “We had the sources, who had kept the evidences, such as the belt that was used to torture the monkey and some of the students have agreed to be the eyewitnesses in the case.” However, it is still unclear why the students did not protest when the simian was being tortured. Another source from the hostel says that the incident took place on the noon of November 19 and was done privately. Around 30 people have come forward to give their testimony. The anonymity of the eyewitnesses is being maintained. “We have filed the FIR and the investigation is on. There are teams deployed to find out what exactly happened,” said an investigating officer in the case. 

College authorities said that they knew about the incident only on November 20. “As soon as the incident came to light, we initiated an internal investigation. After speaking to the students, we found that the four students were guilty and we suspended them immediately,” said college principal Anna Pulimood. When asked if the college planned to initiate further action, she said, “A detailed investigation will be done, looking at the individual involvement of all four of them. Based on that, we will take further action.” 

The college is actively cooperating with the police. “We, as an institution, condemn cruelty towards animals. This incident is unfortunate,” she added. 

Not long time ago, the video of two medical students from Chennai throwing a dog (named Bhadra) from the terrace went viral. Despite a major uproar, no strict action was taken against the two students. After the latest incident, activists want a system in place that takes strict action against those who are found guilty. 

In the case of Bhadra, the disciplinary committee formed by the medical university asked the students to pay a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI). Not many were happy with the decision as the action was not strict enough. “A stricter action in the Bhadra case might have had a bigger impact,” says Antony Rubin, Honorary Animal Welfare Officer and a rescuer. However, he says that this case is different from that of Bhadra. “Bhadra is a dog, a domestic animal and is still alive. Also, there was video evidence against the accused.”

In this particular case, a case under IPC section 429 and other sections of Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 has been registered against the four, since they tortured a monkey (female bonnet macaque) and the fine here is Rs 25,000 and above. Though it is a bailable offence, it is up to the discretion of the judge to grant the accused bail. We only hope that in this case, the judge takes a strict stand against those who are found guilty. We plan to take this up with the concerned university to ensure that an example is created for those who think they can get away with torturing animals,” says Antony. 

Students at CMC Vellore are shocked that an incident like this happened in their campus. “We have a sprawling campus with a variety of animals here. There are so many monkeys in the campus and we co-exist. We wonder why these students have to take such an extreme step,” says Govind G, a student. Supriya, another student says, “I stay away from home and spending time with dogs and other animals here is one of my favourite things. As doctors, we are taught to be compassionate and I wonder what kind of human being would be so cruel. I am proud of the students who took a stand against  the culprits.” Majority of the students want the four to be rusticated. “If proven guilty, these four students should not be allowed back in college,” says another student.