The West bengal government was instructed by the calcutta high court on thursday to rename the lion called Akbar and the lioness named Sita that are housed in the same enclosure at bengal Safari Park, according to Bar and Bench. The state government's attorney was questioned by the court on whether he would name his pet after a Muslim prophet or a Hindu god.
 
According to a one-judge panel led by Justice Saugata Bhattacharya, Akbar was a "secular Mughal Emperor" and a significant portion of the populace in the nation worshiped Sita.

"Mr. Counsel, are you going to name your pet after a Muslim prophet or a Hindu god? I believe that none of us would have identified them as Akbar and Sita if we had been in a position of authority. Is it possible for any of us to name an animal in Rabindranath Tagore's honor?

A greater portion of this nation worships Sita. I also object to naming the lion in Akbar's honor. "He was a successful, effective, and secular Mughal Emperor," Bar and Bench cited the high court as stating.

The vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) bengal branch filed a petition in court challenging the West bengal government's decision to keep the two huge cats together. The group said that it was insulting to Hindus to keep the two animals together and asked that the lioness' name be changed.
 
The managers of the Tripura Zoo named the two lions in 2016 and 2018, the West bengal government told the court, prior to their recent relocation to the bengal Safari Park.
 
The controversy over their names, according to Additional Advocate General (AAG) Debjyoti Choudhary, began as soon as the lions got to West Bengal.
 
Observing on wednesday that the lioness could have been named 'Sita' out of affection, Justice Saugata Bhattacharya's directive to the state administration was very different from that. The judge questioned, "How does it matter at all?" and mentioned that everyone worshipped the lion at the feet of goddess Durga.
 
Justice Bhattacharya, however, stated on thursday that he had considered the matter overnight and questioned if an animal deserves to be named after a god, a figure from mythology, or a group of freedom fighters.
 
"We are not discussing the names of a zoo department officer's pet animals. The court said, "But since you are a welfare and secular state, why should you cause controversy by naming a lion after Sita and Akbar?"
 
"You could have named it Bijli or something like that," the judge inquired further. However, why give Akbar and Sita such names?"
 
The calcutta high court further noted that the current controversy over the names of lions may be avoided and that West bengal is currently at the focus of various other problems.
 
While urging the court to reject the VHP's petition, attorney Debjyoti Choudhary promised the court that the lions would receive new names. The Hindu group's case was directed by the court to be classed as a public interest lawsuit (PIL) and to be listed before the PIL hearing bench.
 
 
 
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Akbar Sita Lion

SIBY JEYYA

22/02/2024 05:07 PM