Pakistani YouTube star Rajab Butt has been ordered by a court to release a video about a lion cub given to him within a year. The decision is a punishment for illegally owning an animal.
Butt, who has 5.6 million subscribers on YouTube, received a lion cub as a gift in December. The caged animal was given to him by another YouTube blogger, Umar Dolla, as a wedding present.
Butt posted a video of his wedding on YouTube, where a wildlife officer saw it. He filed a police report against the blogger.
According to the court's decision, Butt must release a 5-minute video about the life of the lion cub every month until 2025.
The blogger himself, commenting on the situation, expressed regret that he had accepted the animal as a gift and admitted that “keeping wild animals in such circumstances is inappropriate”.
“As an influential person on social media, I must create positive content. I had no right to keep the lion cub, and by doing so, I set a bad example”.
The court also ordered the wildlife department to help Butt create educational content about the lion cub.
In court, Butt stated that he remained the legal owner of the animal, but the judge ordered the lion cub to be confiscated. The animal will now be housed at the Lahore Zoo.
The zoo director said that lions cannot be tamed and keeping them at home is cruel to the animal and dangerous to humans.
Butt promised to provide public assistance through his social media and spread messages about wildlife rights.