The uproar over gay marriage in New York pales in comparison.

Indian authorities intervened last week to halt a wedding between two monkeys named Raju and Chinki in Northwest India's Talwas village. Since Indian law protects monkeys as government property, police officers confiscated the newly hitched simians and released them into the wild.

The owners of the monkeys planned a full elaborate wedding, complete with invitations and a banquet, although they ultimately had to conduct the ceremony in secret in order to elude the more than 200 guards who arrived to stop it. In Hinduism some animals are revered as avatars of the gods, a belief expressed by an incredulous wedding guest who confronted the police.

They told me the monkeys have been captured, 72-year-old Prem Jain said. They can't capture God!

Scroll down to see photos of the astonishing event.

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Rajesh, a 38-year-old auto rickshaw driver, shares a cigarette with his monkey Raju at Banetha village, located in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, July 4, 2011 REUTERS
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Rajesh, a 38-year-old auto rickshaw driver, plays with his monkey Raju in his house at Banetha village, located in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, July 4, 2011 REUTERS
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Rajesh, a 38-year-old auto rickshaw driver, makes a local drink as his monkey Raju is fed water by his wife at Banetha village, located in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, July 4, 2011 REUTERS
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Villagers watch women dancing in the temple during a pre-wedding function at Talwas village, located in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, July 5, 2011. REUTERS
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Forest department officials try to persuade villagers to call off a wedding between two monkeys at Talwas village, located in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, July 5, 2011. REUTERS
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Raju, a monkey, is seen chained to a wooden log on a thatched roof at Banetha village, located in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, July 4, 2011 REUTERS
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A forest department official carries Chinki, a monkey, on his shoulder after it was found tied to a tree outside Talwas village, located in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, July 6, 2011. REUTERS
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