27 June,2017 10:00 AM IST | Karachi | mid-day online correspondent
A businessman, who took his pet lion for a ride around bustling port city of Karachi was promptly thrown into a cage himself by the police after a video of the big cat went viral on social media
A businessman, who took his pet lion for a ride around bustling port city of Karachi was promptly thrown into a cage himself by the police after a video of the big cat went viral on social media.
The footage shows the lion, wearing a leash and collar, chilling in the back of the man's mini truck.
Keeping wild cats as pets is not uncommon in Pakistan, where wealthy businessmen have been known to operate private zoos and sometimes parade the animals for the public.
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The video shows a lion lounging in the back of a pick-up truck. He is restrained by a leash and collar, as curious onlookers walk past in the city.
The business was later identified as Saqlain Javed. He was arrested on Wednesday but later freed on bail. according to Javed, he was allegedly taking the lion home after a visit to the vet.
"The man was driving around with his lion near a local market and it was a matter of endangering public life and property," senior police superintendent Muqadas Haider told Reuters.
Javed has a license to run a personal zoo and raise lion cubs, Haider added, but is not allowed to transport the animal on city streets. The lion has been returned to its home as police consult the wildlife department on further action.
-with agency inputs
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