Hundreds March in Pune Against Animal Abuse
Shivajinagar, 2nd October 2025: Hundreds of people from across India converged on FC Road for a march, a powerful demonstration demanding animal liberation and an end to speciesism. Organized by Pune Animal Liberation, the event highlighted the plight of animals exploited for food, clothing, entertainment, and other purposes.
Activists carried placards with thought-provoking messages, including “Their Body, Not Ours,” “Meat Is Murder,” and “Milk = Beef,” while chanting slogans such as “Animals Deserve Freedom, Just Like Us” and “Their Milk, Not Ours.” The march aimed to educate the public about the inherent value and rights of animals, emphasizing the need to recognize them as sentient beings with dignity and worth.
During the march, activists shed light on animal exploitation across industries, including dairy farming practices such as artificial insemination and calf separation, and the treatment of chickens in the egg industry. Speakers emphasized that animals are sentient beings capable of experiencing pain, joy, and suffering, just like humans.
“The reason for so much cruelty, abuse, and violation is that we view animals as resources, not sentient beings,” said Pravin, an activist. “It’s our collective responsibility to stop exploiting them and continue fighting for their rights.”
Amjor Chandran, co-organizer of the Vegan India Movement, added, “We breed animals into existence and exploit them for our greed. There’s a misconception that we need animals for nutrition, but peer-reviewed research shows we can thrive on a whole-food, plant-based diet. We can be healthy without consuming animal products, whether it’s milk, meat, dairy, eggs, or honey.”
Saee Manakant, one of the event organizers, drew parallels between speciesism and other forms of prejudice. “Casteism, racism, and other biases inflict suffering on fellow humans. Similarly, our belief that we are superior to animals and can do as we please causes unimaginable suffering to billions of animals—a form of discrimination called speciesism.”
The activists reaffirmed their commitment to spreading awareness about speciesism and ending all forms of animal exploitation.
