The NGO People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has recognised former Supreme Court Justice KS Panicker Radhakrishnan its man of the year award. In a press release, PETA wrote:
For heading the bench that passed the landmark judgement in favour of PETA India and the government body the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) clarifying that bulls must not be used in jallikattu, bull races, bullfights or any other type of performance and that called for animals to be respected in many other ways, Honourable Justice (Retd.) Mr. K.S. Panicker Radhakrishnan, Supreme Court of India (SC), is People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India’s Man of the Year.
Article 51a (g) of the Indian Constitution makes it the requirement of every Indian citizen to have compassion for living creatures,"explains PETA India CEO. “Retired Judge Radhakrishnan and Fernandez are role models in our society who uphold this mandate for kindness to animals through the actions they take, as we all should.”
The groundbreaking SC judgement passed earlier this year also referenced the concept of “speciesism”—discrimination against others simply for being another species—and compared it to other recognized wrongs: racism, castism and sexism. It also made clear that staged fights between animals, like cockfighting and dog-fighting, for entertainment must not be permitted; that education about humane treatment of animals is imperative; and that stronger penalties for cruelty to animals must be passed; among other animal-friendly verdicts.