Brajesh Srivastava and wife Shabista made headlines this week after they decided to leave all their property and money to their pet monkey, Chunmun. 

The couple say that they have raised the monkey as if he were their child, and that the moment when he came into their lives marked a turning point for both of them.

The couple were ostracised from their families as a result of their marriage, given that Brajesh Srivastava is Hindu and his wife is Muslim, and inter-faith marriages still cause controversy in many parts of India. 

The couple apparently adopted him after he became orphaned and found prosperity from that point on in 2005, after which Shabista, who is a lawyer, saw an upturn in business and Brajesh, who owns several businesses including a cable TV network and a flour mill, saw his companies go from strength to strength. 

Chunmum lives in a part of the house (a building he will inherit in the future) where he has air-conditioned rooms during the summer and heaters for the winter, and apparently eats well every day, with a menu including pomegranate and a glass of milk for breakfast and "a home-cooked meal of lentils, bread, vegetables and chutney", although his favourite foods are apparently chow mein and burgers.

Given that he is only 10-years-old and is likely to live for another 25-30 years, the couple say they wanted to be sure that he was looked after should he outlive them, so they have named is as their sole heir, meaning he will get the house worth an estimated 7 million rupees (€99,545), the surrounding land, and a bank account with millions of rupees in it. The money will also go to charities that helps monkeys in need, whose habitats are threatened by deforestation and other causes. 

Oh cruel fate, why could we not have been born a monkey so that we too may have land and savings bestowed upon us? 

Via Independent.ie, BBC News and The Washington Post. Main pic via Wikipedia