A video of animal cruelty is surfacing on the internet wherein two men can be seen forcing a mule to inhale a weed-stuffed cigarette in Uttarakhand's Kedarnath area.
In the now-viral video, one man can be seen holding the mule's mouth and a nostril while the other man is forcing the animal to inhale the weed.
Watch the viral video here:
The video claimed to be from Kedarnath Dham, however, Rudarpryad Police reacted to it and confirmed that the incident took place near a stopping place for the Kedarnath Dham Yatra, Tharu Camp near Choti Lincholi, in the Rudraprayag district. Taking it to Twitter, Rudraprayag police tweeted, "First thing, this video is not from the Kedarnath area. Secondly, taking cognizance of the video going viral related to the Kedarnath Dham walking route, a case has been registered against the horse and mule operator at Kotwali Sonprayag."
Have a look at the tweet here:
According to Rudraprayag police, a case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act has been registered against the mule owner, Rakesh Singh Rawat.
Soon after the video went viral, social media users slammed the men in question and are certainly not happy. One user wrote, "Vidharmi should be banned in our religious places." Another user demanded action against the men. Yet another user, "The main reason for the disaster in Kedarnath was to get employment to these sinners."
Check Twitter reactions here:
Meanwhile, the Kedarnath Yatra at Sonprayag was stopped on Sunday after the area received heavy rain. The yatra began on April 25 this year and as per official data released on June 22, as many as 30 lakh pilgrims visited Char Dham and over 10 lakh pilgrims visited Kedarnath in the ongoing Char Dham Yatra.
