AWBI warns against dog-culling

The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) has warned the State government that its decision to cull aggressive street dogs would amount to contempt of Supreme Court.

Urging Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to put on hold the decision, R.M. Kharb, AWBI chairman, asked the Mr. Chandy to await the outcome of the cases related to stray dogs that were pending before the apex court. The Supreme Court was considering the issue of street dogs, and several petitions were posted before it for final disposal in the 3rd week of June, he said in a letter to the Chief Minister.

Incidentally, a posting on the website of the State government said it had plans to widely implement the Animal Birth control programmes across the State following an all-party meeting held on Thursday. It further stated that there were no legal hurdles to kill dangerous and rabid dogs.

Mr. Kharb pointed out that while deciding on to cull all aggressive street dogs in Kerala, “reliance has erroneously been placed on a 2006 Kerala High Court judgment permitting culling.” The State’s decision was unlawful and in violation of restraint orders passed by the Supreme Court against all such orders passed by High Courts after December, 2008, he pointed out.

While arriving at the decision to cull the dangerous dogs, he argued, the State government had “failed to consider the detailed and specific opinion in this regard, together with Supreme Court orders and other supporting documents,” that were forwarded by the Board.

The Board chairman also forwarded copies of the relevant Supreme Court orders which stayed various High Court orders in this relation to the Chief Minister.

In sanctioning the proposed cull, the letter said, the Chief Minister was “in fact be acting in the face of, and in violation of the Supreme Court view. We at the Animal Welfare Board of India trust that it is not your intention to do so,” the letter said.