Mumbai - Kick actor Jacqueline Fernandez is hoping to urge Health Minister Harsh Vardhan to have a heart for animals by appealing to his taste buds. That's why she has sent him a bunny-shaped vegan cake with the words "Be Sweet to Bunnies - Ban Animal-Tested Products" written on it in tasty icing, along with a letter. Jacqueline, who is a vegan, was delighted to learn that after banning the testing of cosmetics and their ingredients on animals, the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare is now considering amending The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, to include a ban on the import and sale of cosmetics that have been tested on animals anywhere in the world.
In her letter, Jacqueline writes, "There was no news sweeter to my ears than when I heard that your ministry included the new rule in The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, which bans the testing of cosmetics and their ingredients on animals in India in favour of modern, non-animal and human-relevant test methods. Along with sending the vegan cake that accompanies this letter, I am writing to request that you be sweet to bunnies again by passing the proposed ban on the import and sale of cosmetics if they or their ingredients have been tested on animals". She continues, "My many compassionate friends and I were thrilled to know that your ministry agrees that the only way to be a bunny's honey is to let bunnies live freely, as they should, and not by caging them and conducting painful tests on them for lipstick and mascara".
If introduced into The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, the new rule could state, "135-B. Import of cosmetics tested on animals prohibited.-No cosmetic tested on animals shall be imported". A decision to ban the import and sale of cosmetics if they or their ingredients have been tested on animals would bring India in line with Israel and the European Union, which have already passed similar bans.
After learning about the issue from PETA India, many other stars - including Raveena Tandon-Thadani, Dia Mirza, R Madhavan, Rahul Khanna, Sunny Leone, Pooja Bhatt, Lara Dutta, Trisha Krishnan, Dino Morea and Esha Deol-Takhtani - petitioned the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and also asked it to introduce such a ban.
This is not the first time that Jacqueline has come forward to speak up for animals.
Last year, she met with the Mayor of Mumbai and asked him to ban the use of horse-drawn carriages in the city. She also sent a letter to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation Commissioner pushing for the ban and starred in an ad to help raise awareness of the routine cruelty that horses endure in this industry.
