Langur found hanged in housing colony

A two-year-old langur died on Wednesday after getting tangled in a piece of rope that was used to tie him to a tree in a residential colony of south Delhi's Vasant Kunj area to scare away monkeys. The animal's body was found early morning, stuffed in a gunny bag was found dumped in a forest area near the locality.

The police suspect that the animal fell down from the tree and apparently got hanged after his body was tangled in the rope and in the branches of the tree. The langur was kept at a bungalow in the residential colony to ward off monkeys from the colony, police said, adding that the autopsy report of the langur is still awaited to confirm cause of death.

Police were also approached by a wildlife NGO that alleged the langur was trafficked into Delhi from another state by two men, who had illegally rented out the animal to earn money.

A senior police officer said that a case under section 429 (mischief by killing or maiming cattle, of any value or any animal of the value of fifty rupees) of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and section 11 of the Wildlife Protection Act.

"We are verifying the allegations that the langur was trafficked by two men. The role of the two men is also being probed," said the officer. Police are also questioning the man who was the caretaker and residents of the colony to know more.

A spate of incidents involving cruelty perpetrated on animals have emerged acorss the country in the recent past, much to the outrage of animal activists.