Madras allowed a veterinarian to visit a baby monkey he had been caring for for ten months

The Madras High Court on Wednesday allowed Coimbatore-based veterinary surgeon V. Valliappan to meet the baby monkey he rescued and cared for for over ten months after it was injured in a stray dog ​​attack.

The directive was issued as part of an interim order in a suit filed by Valliappan earlier this week.

A single-judge bench of Justice Karthikeyan directed Valliappan to visit the Arihant Anna Zoological Park in Vandalur, Chennai on Saturday and submit a report on the interaction.

The bench also directed Tamil Nadu forest department officials to observe the interaction between Valliappan and the monkey and submit a report by November 14.

A decision on Valliappan’s petition for temporary custody of the monkey will be taken after considering the reports.

Addressing Government Special Representative T. Srinivasan, Justice Karthikeyan stressed that cases involving human-animal bonding require a sensitive approach. The judge expressed interest in whether the monkey recognizes Valliappan as two weeks have passed since their separation.

This comment was in response to the complainant’s lawyer R. Sankarasubbu, who alleged that Valliappan looked after the monkey from December 4, 2023 to October 26, 2024.

Justice Karthikeyan also asked the government representative to provide the court with the relevant rules and regulations regarding granting temporary custody of animals to individual caregivers.

In his testimony, Valliappan narrated how he first encountered an injured baby monkey during a dog sterilization camp in Sholingur municipality of Ranipet district.

The monkey suffered multiple injuries from dog bites and was partially paralyzed from the hip down. Since then, he has provided comprehensive treatment and nutrition, but on October 26, the animal was taken from him and transferred to the zoological park.

Valliappan, who initially sought temporary custody of the monkey on October 28, said the animal still requires additional care to achieve full independence. He argued that although a monkey might eat due to hunger, it might not be able to provide sufficient nutrition on its own.

Citing the bond he had formed with the animal over months of care, he expressed concern that the animal might become ill again without his care. The veterinarian assured the court that he would provide regular updates on the monkey’s health if it was granted temporary custody, and would allow Forest Department inspections if necessary.

Valliappan is associated with Prani Mithran, an animal welfare organization based in Madurai that offers free veterinary services throughout Tamil Nadu.