Supreme Court Orders Release Of Non-Aggressive Stray Dogs, Confine Dangerous Ones
Supreme Court on Friday revised its August 11 directive on removing stray dogs from Delhi-NCR streets, stating that they should be returned to their original locations after sterilisation and vaccination, except in cases where the animals are rabid or display aggressive behaviour.
The apex court also prohibited the public feeding of stray dogs in open spaces, directing the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to create designated feeding areas in every ward. Observing that unregulated feeding had contributed to several incidents, the bench underlined the need for structured management of the practice.
It further ruled that any obstruction to public servants carrying out their duties would attract liability. The bench also said that animal lovers wishing to care for stray dogs may apply to the MCD for adoption.
Expanding the scope of its hearings on the stray dog menace, the Supreme Court issued notices to the Animal Husbandry Secretaries of all states and Union Territories, asking for their responses on creating a national policy to tackle the issue.
Additionally, the Registry of the apex court has been instructed to collect details of stray dog-related petitions pending before various High Courts, with all such matters to be transferred to the Supreme Court for consolidated adjudication.
Welcoming the Supreme Court’s latest verdict on stray dogs, advocate and petitioner Nanita Sharma called it a “balanced order”. She said the court has taken all cases related to stray dogs pending in various state courts under its jurisdiction.
“This is a balanced order. The court has involved all states in this matter. All cases pending in various courts will now be merged in a single court. They have said that normal dogs should be sterilised while aggressive dogs should be kept in enclosures or shelters. The court has also directed the MCD to set up designated feeding areas for stray dogs,” Sharma told reporters.
Earlier, on August 11, the Supreme Court had directed that stray dogs be removed from Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Gurgaon and Faridabad without any compromise and ordered that captured animals should not be released back on the streets.
In its detailed order, the court clarified that the direction was not based on a “spur of the moment” but came after extensive deliberation. The court said that the authorities had failed to deal with a serious issue affecting public safety for more than two decades.
A bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan said that the systematic inaction of the authorities over the years had forced the court to intervene. The bench stressed that the directions were for the safety of both people and animals, and emphasised that “it is not personal.”
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