Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe BHUBANESHWAR, India, Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Indian police stopped hundreds of snake charmers from releasing their snakes in the state assembly to protest a crackdown on their profession. The BBC said hundreds of charmers marched to the assembly building in Bhubaneshwar, the capital of Orissa in eastern India, with snakes in hand to make their point. Advertisement Halted by police, they sent a delegation to deliver a letter of protest to lawmakers that demanded an end to the crackdown. Wildlife officials have seized hundreds of snakes and released them into forests in recent months. The charmers want to keep their jobs until alternative work is found. Wildlife officials and activists allege snake charmers torture their snakes, a charge the charmers deny.
