Dog culling: Supreme Court directs States to follow law in letter and spirit

The Supreme Court directed that various provisions of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 (Act) and the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2001 (Rules) have to be complied with in “letter and spirit” by the States and Union Territories..A Division Bench of Dipak Misra and Shiva Kirti Singh JJ. passed this interim order in the batch of appeals from Bombay and Kerala High Courts against culling of dogs..Senior Advocate Raj Panjwani appeared for the Animal Welfare Board while Senior Advocate Shekhar Naphade appeared for the Bombay Municipal Corporation. Senior Advocate R Basant represented the State of Kerala. Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave is serving as the Amicus Curiae in the case..The court after hearing the parties made it clear that there cannot be indiscriminate killing of dogs..“There can be no trace of doubt that there has to be compassion for dogs and they should not be killed in an indiscriminate manner, but indubitably the lives of the human beings are to be saved and one should not suffer due to dog bite because of administrative lapse.”.The Court has laid particular emphasis on the following provisions:.Section 9(f) of the Act which empowers the Board to ensure that unwanted animals are destroyed by local authorities, wherever it is necessary to do so, either instantaneously or after being rendered insensible to pain of suffering.Rule 5 of the Rules which lays down that the Committee constituted under rule 4 shall be responsible for planning and management of dog control programme.Rules 9 and 10 of the Rules which provide for euthanasia of rabid and furious dogs..The Court held that any action taken by the States and Union Territories should be in accordance with the Act and Rules..“…for the present it is suffice to say that all the State municipal corporations, municipal committees, district boards and local bodies shall be guided by the Act and the Rules and it is the duty and obligation of the Animal Welfare Board to see that they are followed with all seriousness. It is also the duty of all the municipal corporations to provide infrastructure as mandated in the statute and the rules. Once that is done, we are disposed to think for the present that a balance between compassion to dogs and the lives of human being, which is appositely called a glorious gift of nature, may harmoniously co-exist….Needless to emphasize, no innovative method or subterfuge should be adopted not to carry out the responsibility under the 1960 Act or the 2001 Rules. Any kind of laxity while carrying out statutory obligations, is not countenanced in law. A copy of the order passed today be sent to the Chief Secretary of each of the States and the competent authority of Union Territories, so that they can follow the same in letter and spirit.”.The matter has been listed for final disposal on March 9, 2016.