Gurugram, March 28 (IANS) The court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Manoj Kumar Rana on Thursday ordered the Gurugram Police to register a case against Bigg Boss OTT 2 winner Elvish Yadav for allegedly using rare species of snakes in the music video.
The case would be registered under various sections including Cruelty to Animals Act, Wild Life Act and Gambling Act at the Badshahpur police station.
The next hearing in the matter has been fixed for April 10. On this date, the Badshahpur Police Station team will submit the compliance report in this case to the court.
The complainant Saurabh Gupta, a member from People for Animals (PFA), had filed a complaint in the court in November last year and demanded an FIR against Elvish Yadav and Rahul Yadav, alias Fazilpuria, alleging that they had illegally used rare species of snakes in their music video.
He also alleged that they had not obtained permission from the Animal Welfare Board, the district administration, or the Forest Department to shoot the video.
Gupta had also filed an application with the court, stating that he has been receiving threats from wildlife smuggling gangs.
He also forwarded the letter to the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the District and Sessions Judge of Gurugram and the Gurugram Police Commissioner. In the letter, Saurabh mentioned receiving continuous death threats on social media and being pressured to withdraw the complaint.
In this matter, the court issued a notice to Yadav and Fazilpuria and directed the Gurugram Police to investigate the matter.
During the hearing on Thursday, the petitioner argued that the permission taken by the administration for the shooting of the song did not mention the use of snakes from other countries.
After hearing the arguments of the petitioner, the court ordered the police department to register a case under relevant provisions against Yadav.
The controversy arose in January 2023, when Yadav released a music video for his song “Gharwali”. The video featured several scenes in which Yadav and other dancers were seen interacting with snakes.
Yadav was granted by a Gurugram court in connection with the assault case involving fellow YouTuber Sagar Thakur aka Maxtern on March 23.