The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to respond on a plea seeking guidelines for punishment for animal abuse and exploitation in pet shop industry.
A Bench of Justices Dipak Misra and S.K. Singh recently issued notice to the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change on a petition by NGO, Angel Trust, which contended that the Law Commission of India has given a detailed report regarding animals being treated with cruelty by pet shop owners and said the government should notify the rules prepared by the Animal Welfare Board of India .
“The facts that lead to the cause of action for the present petition is the alarming rise of instances of barbaric animal cruelty and inhuman exploitation in pet shop industry, which occur due to a vacuum in law with respect to animal abuse and exploitation,” the petition said.
‘No amendment yet’“The reason for such a vacuum is that the main legislation for animal protection — the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 (PCA) — has not been amended since 1960 to keep up with the times and even today the only punishment for dastardly acts is a mere Rs. 50 fine and no jail term,” it said.
The plea cited recent incidents of brutality to animals including the one on March 20, 2016 which shows CCTV grabs of a man bludgeoning three stray dogs and a puppy in Delhi.
