SC hints local bodies have gone astray; reserves order on stray dogs

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its order on pleas challenging its August 11 verdict to remove stray dogs in Delhi-NCR to shelter homes. A three-member bench headed by justice Vikram Nath did not pass any interim order.

In a curious turn of events on Wednesday, the suo motu case pertaining to stray dogs, being heard by a bench headed by justice JB Pardiwala, was shifted to a newly constituted three-member bench after some lawyers mentioned before the CJI that those directions conflicted with the previous orders passed by other benches.

The bench verbally remarked that the "whole problem is because of inaction by local authorities. No implementation (of rules) is being carried out. On one hand, humans are suffering and, on the other hand, dog lovers and dogs are suffering".

The bench orally added that the Animal Welfare Department is also doing "nothing". It made it clear that all the intervenors in the case, including NGOs and dog lovers, will have to "own a responsibility and follow it".

SC frowned upon the fact that stray dogs have been rounded up and taken away by MCD even when the order (passed by the division bench) was not made public. "Without the order they have picked up dogs?" justice Nath remarked.

Appearing on behalf of the petitioners, senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Manu Singhvi argued that the suo motu order passed by the division bench is "contrary to rules". Sibal argued it is a "very serious situation" and that the order needs to be immediately stayed. Referring to answers furnished in the Parliament, Singhvi said there has been zero rabies deaths in Delhi in the past few years.

Representing Delhi government, solicitor general Tushar Mehta argued that there are several instances of children dying due to rabies after dog bites. "Sterilisation does not stop rabies," Mehta submitted.