Assam Youtuber Arrested Trying to Sell Parakeets on Social Media

GUWAHATI: According to a forest officer, a person has been detained in the Kokrajhar region of Assam for reportedly offering to sell parakeets on his YouTube channel.

He claimed that after being captured by the Gossaiagaon Police, he was then turned over to the Forest Department.

According to Bhanu Sinha, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Kachugaon, Jahidul Islam was detained as a result of a complaint made by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

"Our department and the local police found the person after receiving the complaint. He was taken into custody by the police on Friday in Gossaigaon and turned over to us on Saturday," Sinha added.

The individual was ordered to judicial custody after being brought before the local court the same day, according to the official. From Islam, two parakeets were found. After an inquiry, it will be discovered if anyone else was involved, according to Sinha.

The Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972 makes it illegal to capture, trap, and sell parakeets.

The accusation against Islam was made by an organization dedicated to animal rights because of films posted on his YouTube channel, "Jahid Lifestyle," showing him and his alleged collaborators entering wooded areas, scaling trees to reach parakeet nests, and then trapping them.

The YouTuber can be seen on video feeding a mixture of processed sugary biscuits and water to parakeet chicks, which is against their natural diet and extremely harmful to their health, the PETA statement said. This is being done under the guise of creating "educational" content on how to raise and feed parakeets.

PETA India applauds the Kachugaon Forest Division for catching the offender and saving the parakeets. It is unlawful to capture, acquire, sell, or cage parakeets, and doing so can result in a three-year prison sentence, a fine of up to Rs 25,000, or both, according to a statement from PETA India's cruelty response coordinator, Saloni Sakaria.

The home page of Islam's YouTube channel states that he started using the social media site on June 12, 2020, has 326 videos uploaded, and has 7.64K subscribers.

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