NEW DELHI - Following the sudden death of pop legend Michael Jackson, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has asked for the rights of the singer’s solo hit “Ben” to raise awareness about rats and other rodents used in laboratory experiments.

Written in 1972 for a film with the same name, “Ben” is about the friendship between a lonely boy and a rat named Ben.

“Michael Jackson’s hit has always been a moving testament to the power of empathy for animals,” Tracy Reiman, executive vice president of PETA, said in a statement released here Tuesday.

If more people could be inspired by his song to stop supporting the cruel and ineffective animal-testing industry, it would be a fitting and enduring tribute to this talented performer, she added.

Rodents comprise vast majority of animals used in laboratories, but because of their exclusion from the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA), they are denied the minimal protections provided under the law to other animals.

The song would also be used to spread the message that rats are frequently misunderstood. In the song, Jackson sings, “Ben, most people would turn you away. I don’t listen to a word they say. They don’t see you as I do. I wish they would try to.”