Tinker Tailor Pigeon Fly.
A pigeon was kept in police custody for eight months because officers suspected it was a Chinese spy.
The bird was caught at a port in the financial capital Mumbai and taken into Indian police custody after messages were found written in “Chinese-like script” on its wings. It was then kept secure at a city hospital while cops carried out an investigation, says PETA.
In May of last year, RCF Police Station found the bird with a message and sent it to the BSDPHA (Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Petit Hospital for Animals) for a medical examination. However, it was still there after eight months so the hospital sought permission to release the animal but did not receive a response, claims the animal organization.
The Indian office of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), reached out to intervene after finding the case “astonishing”.
The organization says when it heard the pigeon was in captivity it “sprang into action”.
A PETA rep contacted the police station to grant permission to release the bird.
On Wednesday, police granted “formal permission for the hospital to release the pigeon”.
Local outlets report the bird appeared in good health as it flew away.
They shared the news on Instagram and their website.
PETA’s India Cruelty Response Coordinator Saloni Sakaria said: “PETA India extends gratitude to the BSDPHA for caring for the bird all these months and also commends the RCF Police Station for acceding to its request by promptly granting permission to the hospital and helping to set the bird free.”
However, it’s not the first instance when a bird has been in custody in the country. In 2020, a pigeon was released after an investigation into whether it was a spy finished. The bird had belonged to a Pakistani fisherman but was picked up after it had flown across a militarized border. Four years prior, another pigeon was taken in after being found with a note that threatened Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
