New Delhi: As debate continues over the Supreme Court’s order on stray dogs, there is a growing consensus among animal rights activists that mass sterilisation is the way ahead to maintain public safety as well as to ensure animal welfare.
Fixing an eight-week deadline to remove stray dogs from streets of Delhi-NCR, the top court Monday warned of strict action against any individual or organisation obstructing the drive to move strays to shelters.
On Tuesday, the Delhi Police filed an FIR against animal rights activists who staged a protest outside the Supreme Court followed by another demonstration at India Gate the same day, against the SC’s call for removal of stray dogs from Delhi-NCR streets within eight weeks.
These protesters were booked under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), that deals with the offence of disobedience to an order duly promulgated by a public servant. It penalises individuals who knowingly violate lawful orders issued by public officials, if such disobedience causes harm or obstruction to others.
While a section including both individuals and groups such as various Residents’ Welfare Associations have welcomed the move, animal rights groups have termed the order “cruel” and “inhuman”. Demonstrators had gathered outside the Supreme Court gates by 4:30 pm Monday but were soon moved across the street by the police deployed there.
Delhi resident Preeti Khanna, who runs Street Animal Welfare Society and Goldy’s Heaven, argued that uprooting old, sick, and malnourished strays without proper planning would cause immense suffering.
She insisted that designated land and zones must be allocated for the dogs before any relocation. “A ‘Hitler order’ cannot be passed without proper discussion … sterilisation is the only alternative.”
Preeti was accompanied by Rishi Sharma from Faridabad, founder of BMR Animal Trust, and Renu, who runs Maa Ka Anchal Niswarth Seva, at the protest outside the Supreme Court in central Delhi.
Demonstrators then reached Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate, where the police detained them and took them to Kapashera near the Delhi-Gurugram border. Undeterred, protesters reconvened late evening and attempted to hold a candle march at Kartavya Path. However, police blocked their route to Rashtrapati Bhavan, preventing the march from taking place.
Sonia Naveen, founder of the Wings and Tail Foundation, accompanied by worker at foundation Premlata Barla, told ThePrint that the court order was a brazen neglect of the animals’ welfare. It, she asserted, ignored the emotional and ecological realities of street dogs.
Caregivers and animal activists Vandana Menon and Ajay Anand argued that the Supreme Court order was based on “unverified, one-sided data without input from animal behaviourists or scientists”.
Highlighting that existing animal birth control (ABC) methods are scientifically proven, they urged the court to involve ground-level experts and implement targeted solutions rather than mass removals, which they said would fuel fear without solving the problem.
Concentrating animals in single centres could worsen risks of rabies, they warned.
In Delhi, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has been looking after the ABC programme that has been operational for the past two decades. There are 20 sterilisation centres whose funding is provided by the Delhi government to local bodies, who then disburse it to the ABC centres. In 2019, the last survey of dogs in Delhi was said to have pegged the canine population at 5.6 lakh.
“Ninety percent of sterilisation in the city is done by caregivers, while government authorities have contributed less than the bare minimum,” Twinkle Gogia, an animal rights activist, claimed.
Uprooting the stray dogs, she said, from their territories could disrupt local ecosystems.
Sonali Gaba and Bharat Tyagi, founders of ‘Animal Diaries’, said Delhi currently has no operational pounds and urged authorities to collaborate with existing shelters to help provide sterilisation of aggressive or unwell dogs, backed by necessary government funding.
Diyam Khera, an advocate at the Supreme Court and street animal welfarist, condemned the “systematic failure” of the MCD for the situation.
He alleged corruption, misuse of funds, and lack of rabies isolation kennels as reason for their failure, saying sterilisation drives claimed by the civic body were largely untrue.
With no infrastructure to shelter all strays, he urged the court to adopt a balanced approach, involve NGOs, and tackle rabies through proper sterilisation. “Why should stray dogs pay the price for government failure?” Khera asked, stressing that man-animal conflict needs collaborative, not punitive solutions.
Kasturi Walimbe is an alum of ThePrint School of Journalism, currently interning with ThePrint
(Edited by Tony Rai)
When it comes to the safety and security of toddlers, children and elderly, there can be absolutely no compromise. Frequently we come across incidents of stray dogs mauling little children to death. Of senior citizens being hounded and bitten on their early morning walks. Of even young people being chased by violent strays. In most areas of our cities/towns, venturing out after midnight or in the early morning hours is an absolute nightmare. The delivery guys working for various companies are regularly chased and harassed.
The Supreme Court must prioritize the safety and security of human beings over animal rights. Thanks to the Supreme Court for this excellent order – however, it should be made applicable across India and not just in Delhi.
These activists are far removed from the realities of life of a common man. Part of the elite and privileged classes, they just cannot relate to the fear and harassment we have to deal with on a daily basis.
I would request the Supreme Court to declare stray dogs as vermin. This would enable people to initiate culling of stray dogs on their own and not be dependent on municipal authorities. As it is, urban governance in India is abysmal. It’s pointless to have expectations of our babudom.
All these “animal rights activists” must be rounded up and put in dog shelters. Let them spend a day or two with their beloved stray dogs. Maybe they will come to their senses and understand why it is so important to keep stray dogs out of residential areas and city streets.
Request the Supreme Court to permit culling of stray dogs by municipal authorities. That is the only feasible solution to this problem.