For animals in India, it was a miserable week.
We talk of saviours riding in on a white horse. There was no such saviour for Shaktiman, a beautiful, strong white horse himself, carrying a cop and beaten to the ground when he was brought in to confront protestors in Uttarakhand. He is still in pain, with his leg amputated, his survival in question. Indeed, the quality of his life is a big question even if he does survive.
Shaktiman, the horse, with a prosthetic limb after amputation
A bear was shot dead in Chattisgarh with reports of more than 100 bullets being used.
10 jawans with rifles shot the bear after she killed two villagers and a forest official who was reportedly trying to tranquilize it.
Out of Karnataka, horrifying images appeared on local television, probably shot on a mobile phone by an amused spectator. A crocodile, which had strayed out of a river and on to a field, being viciously battered to death by a group of laughing men. They throw bricks and stones until the head of the animal is a bloody mess. One hero decides to jump on the back of the animal. To his surprise - and a cause for more laughter - the animal turns out to be still alive as it twists its bloodied head in response to being jumped on.
As the men laugh, two of them try to pull the crocodile by its tail, presuming it to be dead.
It is believed that this viciousness took place in North Karnataka at a village called Shivnur on the banks of the river Krishna in Yadgir district. This is about 600 kms from state capital, Bengaluru.
The Forest Department is still investigating the attack, which is in complete contravention of the Wildlife Act. The crocodile seen in the images is a mugger or marsh crocodile which does not usually attack humans. It is one of three crocodile species in India. It is a scheduled or protected animal, and killing it would mean both a fine and imprisonment.
Closer to my home, away from the headlines, there was more bad news. In the semi-rural area where we live, a goat was brought to be sacrificed at a small and old shrine under a banyan tree. The reason: to celebrate a marriage. Attempts to explain that such animal sacrifice was illegal were not heeded. We called the police who came immediately, but too late for the goat. And there was blood on the road...
Also near our home, a dog-loving farming family was looking after and loving four dogs, sharing their limited resources with them. We helped them get the two older dogs spayed - the two charming young puppies were still too young for surgery. But recently, all the dogs took ill. Three of them, including the puppies died - the vet believes they could have been poisoned.
The level of human cruelty to animals should not come as a surprise. But it still continues to shock. So often, the phrase "Behaved like an animal" is used to denote wild, brutal, cruel behaviour. There is only one animal that acts with malice and inflicts pain for no reason - and that is the human.
Y Chakrapani, Yadgir's Deputy Conservator of Forests, who is tracking the crocodile abuse, said many of the farmers he met in the area expressed compassion at the reptile's plight.
There is a quote often attributed to Mahatma Gandhi: "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." We have a long way to go.
(Maya Sharma is NDTV's Resident Editor in Bengaluru)Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of NDTV and NDTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.