New Delhi, Aug. 13: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it would examine a plea alleging non-compliance with rules on controlling the stray dog population, after the matter was mentioned for urgent hearing before Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai.
Appearing for the petitioner — the Conference for Human Rights (India) — a lawyer told the bench of the CJI and Justice K. Vinod Chandran that the Animal Birth Control (Dog) Rules, 2001, which mandate regular sterilisation and immunisation drives for stray dogs, were not being implemented.
CJI Gavai noted that another bench was already dealing with the issue and assured, “I will look into it.”
On August 11, a bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan, calling the rise in dog bite cases an “extremely grim” situation, ordered the permanent relocation of all strays in Delhi-NCR “at the earliest.” That bench also directed the creation of shelters for about 5,000 dogs within six to eight weeks, warning that any obstruction to the relocation drive could lead to contempt proceedings.
The lawyer on Wednesday also referred to a May 2024 order by a bench led by Justice J.K. Maheshwari, which had sent stray dog-related petitions back to the respective high courts.
The August 11 ruling further stressed that shelters should be augmented over time, and warned that strict action would follow against individuals or organisations obstructing the relocation process.
