Owners Bequeath Pet Monkey Everything In Will, ‘Undeserving’ Humans Left Out

A couple in India is under fire for choosing to leave everything to an unlikely heir to their estate: their pet monkey. Although some claim the man and woman’s gesture is a bit of tongue-in-cheek, the two say they are not monkeying around about snubbing their undeserving family members in their will, this according to a report by The Zany News.

No, it’s not inspired by the Planet of the Apes. And as of this writing, primates are not known to talk — at least in humanspeak. This is the story about a beloved pet monkey named Chunmun, who was adopted years ago when he was orphaned.

Indian couple, Brajesh Srivastava and his wife Shabista, who reside in the Raebareli district of Uttar Pradesh, came across a mother who was carrying around Chunmun, just a baby at the time. Shortly thereafter, she died after being electrocuted. The Srivastavas immediately came forward to rescue the baby monkey, has kept it as a pet ever since, and treated it like a son; the couple have no biological children of their own.

The lucky monkey, upon the couple’s death, will inherit all of their property: land, a home, and bank account worth several million rupees. Additionally, a trust fund was established to assist animal rescue efforts in the region.

The heir to the couple’s estate is pampered like a prince. He eats choice food, most of what its owners dine on; no scraps are allowed for this royal member of the family. The pet monkey also has strict living arrangements in place, and his comfort is held to a premium. In the winter, he has heat blowers in his quarters, and in the summer sweltering heat, he is kept cool by air conditioning.

Three years ago, the monkey got a companion. In fact, Chunmun was thrown a “lavish” wedding for his bride’s (Bitti Yadav) special day. Since then, their owners have hosted an anniversary yearly for their nuptials.

It turns out that their pet monkey is benefiting from a bit of family strife. The Srivastavas disowned their relatives, whom both disagreed of their union: Brajesh is Hindu, and his wife is Muslim. As a consequence, they rebelled and wed anyway. And because their families pushed back on their marriage, they left them out of their wills. So, one pet monkey was in the right place, and at the right time.

[Photo by Chris Hondros/Getty Images]