New Delhi: In a shocking incident of animal cruelty that has come to light from Pune, a woman and her son killed their eight-year-old pet Labrador in Pirangut’s Nikate Vasti. The duo has been arrested. Animal welfare activists and citizens have expressed their rage against the incident.
Not just citizens and animal activists, politician Aaditya Thackeray also condemned the killing. Taking to X, he wrote, “I am shocked beyond words to see how humans can behave this way.” He called for strict action against the perpetrators.
I just came across a very very heartbreaking image of a dog being hung to death by its owner family, in Pune.
I am shocked beyond words to see how humans can behave this way.Beyond elections and the other stress of duty, I am appealing to @PuneCityPolice to take strict action…
— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) October 22, 2024
According to senior police inspector Santosh Girigosavi of Paud police station, Prabhavati Vinayak Jagtap first beat up the Labrador with a stick, which caused severe bruising. After this, her son, Omkar Jagtap, hanged the canine to death with a rope, he added. The mother-son duo was arrested following an FIR filed under various sections.
The FIR has been filed against them under Section 11(1)(a) and 11(1)(AL) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, and Section 325 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which makes it illegal to kill, maim, poison, or incapacitate animals.
Padmini Stump, an animal activist with the Mission Possible Foundation, filed a complaint regarding the incident. She said that the accused had earlier reached out to an animal welfare volunteer, claiming they needed to rehome the dog due to restrictions in their new community. “When asked to wait for the rescue team, they threatened to kill the animal,” Stump was quoted as saying by Times of India. However, before the volunteers could arrive at the home, the duo had already killed the dog. This case is particularly heartbreaking because the dog was old, but healthy, and had been with the family for eight years, she said.