The brother of a pensioner stoned to death by a group of “rogue” monkeys has called for the violent animals to be charged.
Dharampal Singh, 72, was out collecting pieces of dry wood when the animals began hurling bricks at him from trees in Uttar Pradesh in northern India on Thursday.
Mr Singh died in hospital after sustaining head and chest injuries after the attack in the town of Tikri, the Times of India reports.
But now his family have lodged a formal complaint to the police and called for the animals to be charged.
Brother of the deceased, Krishnapal Singh, said: “These rogue monkeys are the real culprits and must pay for it.
“We have given a written complaint against the monkeys but the police don’t seem to be convinced enough.”
The local chief of police, Chitwan Singh, responded to pressure from the deceased’s family in disbelief.
He said: “How can we register the case against monkeys?
“This will make us a laughing stock! I don’t think it is a logical demand.
“We are were informed of the bizarre accident and registered it in our case diary after which a post-mortem was also conducted.”