Remembering Raju Srivastava: When the comedian had partnered with PETA India to highlight horse cruelty at weddings

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India has paid a tribute to actor and comedian Raju Srivastava, who passed away earlier today at the age of 58. Srivastava had suffered a cardiac arrest while working out at a gymnasium in Delhi last month and was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), where he underwent angioplasty and was said to have been critical and on ventilator for over a month.

Confirming the news of his death to Indian Express, his brother Dipoo said, “He passed away on Wednesday morning. His daughter Antara informed me right now. I’m in Mumbai, leaving for Delhi.” According to hospital sources, the comedian passed away around 10.30 am.
PETA India remembered their ‘friend’, writing that the organisation and the animals “have lost a great friend”, referring to Srivastava. In a press release, they stated that the comedian had helped PETA India highlight the rampant use of illegal spiked (or “thorn”) bits to control the horses used for weddings.

In an old video — dated August 2021 — he had urged his fans to report the use of these “cruel devices” to the police and to have a “horse-free [wedding] ceremony”.
Back then, the comedian had said, “While we remain blissfully unaware and dance during weddings, the horses that are customarily included in the processions are in a lot of pain because their trainer usually inserts into their mouth a spiked metal object. It wounds the horse, who often bleeds as a result of it.
“But they are not able to express their agony. PETA has been running a campaign with the Lucknow police, wherein it has urged horse trainers to not use such objects.”

In the video, Srivastava had urged his fans to report the matter to the police, should they see an animal with an metal object fixed into their mouth.

PETA India describes on its website that the spiked bits are “vile devices” that are “often fitted into the mouths of horses used for ceremonies such as weddings and rides to control them through pain”.
“Investigations PETA India found horses who had spiked bits embedded deep in their mouths, ripping their lips and tongues and causing them extreme pain, bloody wounds, immense psychological trauma, and often lifelong damage. The use of spiked bits is rampant, even though it is prohibited under Rule 8 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Draught and Pack Animals Rules, 1965,” it mentioned.
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