EXPRESS INDIA (Mumbai, India) 12 September 06 After chinkaras, reptile row for Aamir-starrer - Ishq stars get notice for using spiny tailed lizard, a protected animal

Ahmedabad: Controversy never seems to leave Aamir Khan. After Lagaan, makers of another Aamir-starrer have received a notice, this time too on illegal use of a protected animal. The animal or reptile, to be more precise, in question is the spiny tailed lizard and the film Ishq which also starred Juhi Chawla, Ajay Devgan and Kajol.

Ahmedabad-based animal welfare organisation Bombay Humanitarian League has issued the legal notice through advocate Nimish Kapadia for using the spiny tailed lizard (called sanda in Hindi and sandho in Gujarati), which has been declared protected as per Schedule II of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

The film shows Aamir and Ajay selling oil extracted from the lizard’s tail. The stars are shown dangling the reptile from a string in a scene. There are also shots where the reptile is dropped into boiling water and the oil is then filled into bottles for sale, the notice said.

The NGO’s notice says that the film has given credence to the false belief that sandho oil cures impotency. The film has led to many people buying the oil and has put the reptile in danger.

As per the Section 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act, if the said animal is found in captivity, or caught or poached or used illegally, the offender shall be held liable for imprisonment of a term which may extend upto three years or fine up to 25,000 or both.

The notice has been issued to the star cast, the Central Board for Film Certification, Information and Broadcasting Ministry and the Ministry of Environment and Forests.

The notice seeks details like the censor board’s, a no-objection certificate from the Animal Welfare Board of India and a certificate with respect to compliance of Performing Animal Rules (Registration) Act 2001.

According to a release issued by the Bombay Humanitarian League, the I&B Ministry had on on 6 November, 1991, had issued a mandate to the censor board regarding use of wildlife animals and cruelty to animals in films. The I&B and environment ministries have been requested to remove the objectionable part from the movie.

More about the spiny tailed lizard

* The Indian spiny tailed lizard (Uromastyx hardwickii) is a species of agamid lizard found in the Thar desert, Kutch and surrounding dry areas in Pakistan and India.

* It inhabits dry and desert tracts. Male ranges from 40 to 49cm in length while it is 34 to 40 cms in the case of the female. The male has a longer tail than the female.

* The flesh of the lizard is said to taste similar to that of chicken. The fat stored in the tail of the lizard is purported to have medicinal properties and for this reason, these lizards are often illegally collected and sold in various parts of India as medicine. It is kept in captivity by the cruel practice of dislocating the backbone.
Ishq stars get notice for using spiny tailed lizard

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