Bangalore:
Residents of HSR Layout had the shock of their lives on Sunday morning when they spotted several dead dogs piled up near the garbage pits, frothing and bleeding from their mouths.
"I was on my morning walk as usual, when I saw the street sweepers picking up dead dogs and piling them in one corner. Initially, when I left home I saw one dog dead and thought it was a stray case. But as I moved further I saw many more. Looking at the pile of dead dogs near the garbage pit I was shocked and immediately called for help,'' said Narayana K, a resident of Venkatapura.
The residents of Jakkasandra, Venkatapura and HSR Layout said around 40 stray and pet dogs were poisoned to death by feeding them kababs laced with poison early Sunday morning.
But the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike officials said only 20 dogs had died.
"Some residents who regularly fed stray dogs assumed the death of their respective dogs to be isolated cases and buried them without suspecting any foul play. Later they realised that similar incidents had occurred in neighbouring areas and streets, too," said Narayana.
"When BBMP garbage vans came to pick up the carcasses, we filed a police complaint to investigate the case and also appealed to animal rights organisations for help. We suspect something fishy and the act of local miscreants. We demand that the matter be investigated thoroughly,'' said Narayana.
Of the many street dogs, some were pets. Residents point that they used to feed the animals and they meant no harm to anyone. Some of them had become pets and used to stay in the homes of people, but used to go out only to answer nature's call. They must have eaten the poisoned meat then and died. Some residents were successful in saving their dogs.
M Raja, another resident, said, "When I saw my dog falling ill, I immediately called the nearby veterinarian for help. My dog, along with another, was administered injections immediately and their condition is now better."
He said two months back a few boys were seen pelting stones at stray dogs in the night. "We had warned them not to do that. We suspect this to be their handiwork out of some kind of vengeance," he said.
According to Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre trustee Gopi Shankar, this is cruel and inhumane. Under the Cruelty to Animals Act-1960, it is illegal and a criminal offence to kill animals. The accused face two years in prison and with a fine.
Shankar said only legal way to handle the dog menace is by sterilising them. This is not the first time such an incident has happened, a similar case occurred two months back in Hennur and Byappanahalli.
Adding to this, Sandhya Maddappa, CUPA trustee said that, they do not know who has done, but want the police to investigate in detail and the culprit learn a lesson. Apart from BBMP I have also collected the food samples and am sending them for tests to ascertain the cause.
Dr Parvez Ahmad Piran, joint director (animal husbandry), BBMP, said, the cooked beef and chicken which the dogs fed on was poisoned. Of the 20 dogs which we have taken, two were pets and of the 18 street dogs, 12 were sterilised. Killing dogs in such a manner is barbaric.
"The carcasses have been sent for post mortem and the samples of food have been sent for analysing. Reports are awaited within 24 hours. We suspect the task of some local miscreants," he said. "In a fortnight, two special mobile surgical vans will be sent to the slums and will conduct sterilisation on the spot to clear misconceptions that dogs picked for the procedure are killed. This will be extended to the entire city subsequently."
Following a complaint by the residents of Jakkasandra a criminal case under IPC section 429 has been registered with the Madiwala police. Police Inspector ML Purushotham said, "This appears to be an intentional attempt to kill dogs and doesn't seem to be accidental."
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