Judgement Day for Strays

Stray dogs can be killed, but only the extremely dangerous ones, ruled Karnataka High Court.

To kill or not to kill stray dogs was the Hamletian dilemma facing Bangalore. But the Karnataka High Court settled the issue by finding a middle path. Strays can be killed, but only the extremely dangerous ones, it says. The verdict should cheer parents of Razia and Jishnu, two kids from very poor households who were in the news after they were bitten by strays. Razia requires plastic surgery, which her parents cannot afford. And the compensation amount that the city’s civic body, Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), has paid Jishnu was hardly enough to cover his medical bills. The court also asked the BBMP to frame compensation rules that would do justice to victims. In fact, the 7 December ruling was pronounced on a PIL seeking adequate compensation for victims of stray dogs. Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen also directed the civic body to isolate strays with rabies, till they died a natural death. While disposing the PIL, he said that terminally ill dogs can be euthanised, and added that, “Furious or dumb rabid dogs should be dealt with irrespective of whether there is evidence of such dogs having mauled or bitten children or adults.’’

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arindam