Netizens Criticize Pakistani Couple for Using Sedated Lion Cub as Wedding Photoshoot Prop
The internet is furious after seeing outrageous images of a Pakistani couple who used sedated lion cub as a prop for their wedding photoshoot, posted on Instagram on Studio Afzl’s stories, which is a Lahore-based photography studio. Social media has rightly criticized the actions of the bride and groom.
A Pakistani couple has been criticized for using a lion cub as a prop for their wedding photoshoot | Image: Instagram @studioafzlofficial
In a Twitter post, Save the Wild, an animal welfare organization in Pakistan, shared an eight-second video of the couple posturing for pictures with the sedated cub lying in between them. The organization tagged the Punjab Wildlife and Parks Department in their post and urged the authorities to rescue the cub.
@PunjabWildlife does your permit allow for a lion cub to be rented out for ceremonies?Look at this poor cub sedated and being used as a prop.This studio is in Lahore where this cub is being kept.Rescue him please pic.twitter.com/fMcqZnoRMd
— save the wild (@wildpakistan) March 7, 2021
The short video has gone viral with thousands of views as netizens condemned this action of the couple in the comments section of the post. Apart from that several animal rights organizations have expressed deep concern over the incident and the safety of the wildlife.
A Pakistan-based NGO, JFK Animal Rescue and Shelter has also addressed the incident in a post on Instagram, where the organization disparaged the action. It raised a question on the governance as well, because apparently, these people have licenses to own these cubs, which immediately invalidates the legal actions.
View this post on Instagram
JFK Animal Rescue and Shelter revealed that such incidents have become common in the country due to wildlife trade and government licenses that allow owning wild animals by depriving them of their natural habitat.
People have reacted overwhelmingly to this cruel act of pomp and show via unprecedented animal abuse. Various comments have condemned the couple and the studio for using the animal as a prop for the wedding photoshoot.
I hope they wake up from their slumber, the only positive I can take out of this whole incident is the public outcry. I hope the cub is rescued and rehabilitated into a more suitable environment.
— Jawad Tabrez (@TabrezJawad) March 7, 2021
That’s cruelty
— Eesa Khan عیسیٰ خان (@eesakhan) March 7, 2021
Well this is shameful. No point. Sedating a young animal ?
— Rajinder Sood (@raj7356) March 13, 2021
What a senseless couple??! What kinda morons they’re gonna bring into the world next??? And what if someone used their baby as a prop in their wedding???!! Find out who this couple is and give them a piece of our minds
— Inaaya Mirza ??♀️ (@InaayaMirza) March 8, 2021
This is horrible. Sedating a lion cub in order for people to use them in photo props is the silliest thing I ever heard. Use the funds to abolish the wildlife exploitation don’t pay to support it.
— Indira Seepersaud (@IndiraSeepersa1) March 8, 2021
