The ape will be taken to Lucknow zoo on Thursday by train; tickets (AC First Class) have been booked in the names of Vadodara deputy forest officer Dinesh Mistry, veterinary doctor C N Bhuva, Lucknow zoo keeper N Singh, and Patel.

The Patel family is, predictably, sad. Patel's children, Priya and Divyang, are said to have become specially attached to the gibbon. The Patels' family vet R S Sipai said: ``Law is one thing and reality another. The sensitive animal will find it difficult to cope with the transfer and may fall ill on losing its master.''

Bhuva, while appreciating the sentiment, says the law is supreme and is confident Julie will thrive in her new environment. ``She will benefit from the presence of experts, natural surrounding and other gibbons in Lucknow'', he says.

The case was first brought to the notice of the forest department on December 1, 1997, by Gujarat Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (GSPCA) activist Snehal Bhatt. Patel had then insisted the animal had become emotionally dependent on him and his family and might die if separated. So forest officials relented, despite knowing that possession of the gibbon was illegal.

An appeal by Bhatt saw Gujarat High Court passing an order in April last year that Julie be shifted under the supervision of Patel and a vet so that she would become accustomed to her new surroundings. After a number of reports in the Press over the past six months, the authorities effected the transfer.

The Wildlife Protection Society of India even worked as a medium among all the social fora in the case. The CZA, which found out that there were three other hoolock gibbons at Lucknow zoo, even offered to bear all the expenses of transportation.