HC asks Kerala govt to protect citizens by getting rid of dangerous dogs

Kochi: The Kerala High Court ruled on Wednesday that the state government had a duty to defend citizens against assaults by vicious dogs by identifying, containing, and removing such canines from public areas.

The bench of Justices A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Gopinath P said, "The State administration must remind itself of the fact that in its role as a welfare State and as parans patriae of the citizenry, it is obliged to protect the citizens from the attack of ferocious dogs by identifying and containing such dogs and removing them from the public."

The high court ordered the state government to safeguard the people, but it also ordered it to give police permission to warn the public not to break the law and hurt dogs without a reason. These instructions were given by the bench at a special session that it called after receiving reports of dog bites from throughout the state.

When the court was informed that there have also been allegations of community dogs being unlawfully killed, the bench gave the state government instructions "to cause suitable public instructions to be issued through the State Police Chief, clarifying that while the State Administration is taking necessary steps to contain the incidents of dog bites, the citizenry shall also refrain from taking law into their own hands by inflicting unnecessary harm on community dogs".

The state government informed the court during the hearing that it was acting to address the urgent matter and that a thorough report would be submitted by September 16.

In response to the horrifying murder of a dog named Bruno last year, the court on its own decided to convene the special sitting. On the Adimalathura beach, which is on the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram, the dog was tied up and beaten to death by some people.

The court had issued a number of orders as part of the PIL to monitor the Animal Birth Control (ABC) procedure's implementation across the state in order to prevent the overpopulation of community canines and to make sure they were properly vaccinated against infectious diseases.

On Wednesday, the bench ruled that the state government's report must outline the actions taken in accordance with past court orders as well as the initiatives it plans to take given the current trend of rising dog bite incidents.

Additionally, the circular stated that the state government was required to release the report to the public via the police and set the subject for hearing on September 16.

Animal rights advocates believe that because of media coverage of the topic, people have developed negative attitudes about street dogs. Numerous requests to mass-kill dogs are made practically every day. They assert that rather than concentrating solely on the ABC program's unsuccessful execution, media headlines incite audiences to worry.

Sreedevi, a trustee for People for Animals (PFA), told TNM that the ABC programme, together with good pet keeping, encouraging the adoption of Indie dogs, and adequate waste disposal, constitute the best long-term solution.

As a result of the stray dog problem, numerous stray canines were slaughtered in various regions of Kerala. On Tuesday, September 13, a dog was publicly hanged in the Changanassery neighbourhood of Kottayam. Additionally, a wreath was placed close to the animal's corpse.

Around 12 dogs were poisoned and killed the day before, on September 12, at Moolakulam, Kottayam district. According to reports, the Moolakulam panchayath's Karikode and Keezhoor regions include a number of dead dogs. Under IPC Section 429 (mischief by killing or poisoning animals), Velloor police have filed a case about the matter. Although it wasn't verified, locals said that there were about 40 dog bite instances in Moolakulam in a single week.

This year, dog bites have killed 21 persons in Kerala, five of whom had received vaccines.