TMC MP writes to CJI appealing for stay on SC directions on stray dogs
PTI
Last Updated:
New Delhi, Aug 12 (PTI) Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale on Tuesday wrote to Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, appealing to him for a stay on directions by the Supreme Court for removing stray dogs in Delhi.
The issue has caused a sharp divide, especially on social media, with one side supporting the apex court's Monday directive, citing the risk of rabies and inconvenience caused to residents by stray dogs, and the other side calling it impractical and inhumane.
In a letter addressed to the CJI, Rajya Sabha member Gokhale contended that the SC directions are in contravention of the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023, and urged that the apex court should consider instituting a committee of experts and other stakeholders towards ensuring a holistic and humane solution to the issue taken up suo-moto in this matter.
He also said the directions do not take into account the impediments involved in setting up a large number of animal shelters, and the unintentional consequence of these directions will be to consign all stray dogs in Delhi to 'a certain death in extremely inhumane conditions".
'I have written to the Hon'ble Chief Justice of India this morning with an appeal for a stay on the directions passed by the SC yesterday regarding stray dogs in Delhi and for the review of the order by a larger Bench," Gokhale said in a post on X.
He said the issue of management of stray dogs, as well as the safety of the people, is definitely a matter of concern.
'However, it is not something that can be resolved by arbitrary orders passed by the judiciary without any larger consultative process. Also, subjecting defenceless animals to wanton cruelty can never be a solution," Gokhale said.
Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also took to X to oppose the SC directive, saying it is going to result in horrendously inhumane treatment of them and is a step back from decades of humane, science-backed policy.
'We have sufficient laws in the country to deal with the issue of stray dogs and their sterilisation as well as population control. And I agree that it is a very important issue where the welfare and safety of common people are concerned," Gokhale said in his post.
He said the 'failure" of municipal authorities to implement these laws and do their job cannot and should not become a reason for the judiciary to impose 'cruel and inhumane directions".
In his letter, Gokhale said the directions 'fail to appreciate the practical impediments involved for the State to set up a large number of animal shelters within a short span of 8 weeks".
'With the limited deadline given by the Hon'ble Court, it will be almost impossible for the authorities to set up shelters that can accommodate all stray dogs in the city of Delhi which will invariably lead to the creation of substandard infrastructure, endangering the lives of captured stray dogs".
'Therefore, the unintentional consequence of these directions will be to consign all stray dogs in Delhi to a certain death in extremely inhumane conditions," he said.
Gokhale also said the directions are 'unreasonable with regards to taking an adversarial and hostile approach towards animal lovers and feeders".
He also urged that the apex court should consider allowing intervention applications in the matter in order to allow stakeholders to participate and assist in the resolution of the issue taken up.
Hearing a suo motu case initiated on July 28 over stray dog bites leading to rabies in the national capital, the apex court on Monday directed authorities to remove all stray dogs from Delhi-NCR localities and put them in shelters, while saying the canines won't return to the streets.
A bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan passed a slew of directions and warned of strict action, including contempt proceedings, against anyone obstructing the process. PTI AO RT RT
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - PTI) view comments
First Published:
August 12, 2025, 16:45 IST
News agency-feeds TMC MP writes to CJI appealing for stay on SC directions on stray dogs
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Wire
28 minutes ago
- The Wire
Trump's Tariffs Leave Modi Between a Rock and a Hard Place, and the Economy on the Ropes
India cannot afford a very protracted trade negotiation with Donald Trump. Time is of the essence. The Indian economy cannot face continuing uncertainty in the face of slowing consumption and investments, both domestic and foreign. India started talks with the US on the bilateral trade agreement in March 2025, even before Trump had announced the punishing tariffs on the world in early April. After five rounds of talks spread over four months, India couldn't even get an interim agreement and instead got a 50% tariff slapped on all its exports. There is now a desperate attempt to find new interlocutors who can figure out what is it that might work with Trump. There is also a report that Prime Minister Modi would try to meet him next month during the UN General Assembly meeting in New York. To come back to the main issue, does India have the luxury of time at all? After announcing the most punishing tariffs on India, Trump has given 21 days to resolve all outstanding trade issues. After that, the tariff kicks in. India has to take a political call, one way or another. Frankly, there are only two options. One option is for India to dilute its firm position taken during the five rounds of negotiations, especially on opening up the agriculture and dairy sector. Modi cannot obfuscate matters anymore. Trump, in a way, has him somewhat cornered. If Modi dilutes India's position in some areas then he will have to communicate it to his domestic constituency transparently. Even if India decided to shift from buying Russian oil to US energy, it will have to be done openly. There is no place to hide anymore. The other option is to steadfastly stick to one's position and take the nation into confidence that there will be a lot of short term pain which Indians will have to collectively endure. A different set of policy measures will be needed to deal with that sort of pain. Modi's instinct so far has been to not cross red lines already set in the negotiations. His public statement that he is willing to 'pay a personal price' to protect the farmers is an indication that he is under a lot of pressure. The fact is India's poor and lower middle class are already paying the real price of economic mismanangement so far. The Trump tariff, even if it is only 25%, is only likely to make things worse. Therefore, it is important that the people of India – workers, traders, producers and consumers – know soon enough where exactly they stand so that they can adjust their expectations. The economy cannot wait too long for the hide and seek games being played between Modi and Trump. In this Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020 file image, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump during joint press statement, in New Delhi. Photo: Via PTI. Most independent economic research outfits have pronounced that India could lose 0.5 to 1 percentage points of GDP at present tariffs. More than that, the sectors which export substantially to the US – garments, apparel and textiles and gems, jewellery and precious stones – are quite labour intensive and already smaller manufacturers are facing problems with new orders. Together, these two sectors contribute close to $17 billion and the supplies mostly come from the small sector who work on very small margins. Big corporate groups like the Tatas, Ambanis or Adanis can still absorb lower margins and losses in their vast balance sheets. But the MSME sector can't. They will be the first to fold up. Some experts even suggest there could be a mini COVID-lockdown kind of labour migration to rural areas once again. These are things the government will have to prepare for while looking at policy options. If Modi agrees to open up the agriculture and dairy sectors, then there will be a different kind of backlash. So Trump has really put his friend Modi between a rock and a hard place. Worse, all this is coming at a time when the economy is struggling to get back to a 7% GDP growth path. After the Union budget this year , hopes were raised that government spending and private consumption backed by income tax cuts would lift growth to 7% plus all over again. But that expectation stands belied. The Trump tariffs in April actually nullified whatever positives that might have been there in the budget. High-frequency indicators like auto sales, steel consumption and power demand now show slower growth, pointing to demand-side pressures. Bank credit growth dropped sharply to 9% in June 2025 from 16% a year earlier, signalling weaker investment demand. Urban consumption demand, in particular, faces challenges due to high rental inflation and slow wage growth, with a slowdown expected to persist this year. There is also the disturbing UPI payment data brought out by online publication, Morning Context, which says the highest growth is being recorded in repayments of past debts. The payments data – which is realtime data reflecting spending by the vast lower middle class – also show slowing consumption, both discretionary and non-discretionary. It is also well known that average middle class Indians have been drawing down their savings for consumption as wages and salaries have stagnated. It is stagnating even in sectors like IT where things were better until some years ago. The last few years have also seen the record pledging of gold to take loans for consumption. By one estimate, total outstanding loans against gold could touch Rs 14 lakh crore by 2027. This used to be less than Rs 3 lakh crore until 2018. Rural demand recovery has also been sluggish, heavily reliant on the monsoons. Some global research firms have concluded that a structural decline in consumption demand is now a reality, marked by weak investment rates, stagnant real wages. Swiss based UBS group has warned last January that India's economy had entered a 'structural slowdown,' driven by long-term moderation in credit growth, foreign direct investment, export competitiveness, and corporate earnings – not just short-term cyclical fluctuation. The harsh Trump tariffs and the ongoing negotiations have come at this vulnerable juncture for India.
The Wire
an hour ago
- The Wire
Forget the Rules, Say the Judges Meant to Uphold the Rule of Law
Substantive justice cannot be achieved without compassion even for those you don't like, including street dogs and the citizens who care for them. Dogs eat at an animal rehabilitation facility in Noida on August 13, 2025. Photo: PTI/Salman Ali. In his celebrated lecture titled 'Role of the Judge in a Democracy', Justice A.K. Sikri, a renowned former judge of the Supreme Court, quotes the American jurist and legal philosopher Ronald Dworkin as saying that a true democracy is 'not just a statistical democracy, in which anything a majority or plurality wants is legitimate for that reason, but communal democracy, where everyone must be allowed to participate in politics as an equal'. One way to interpret this in the context of justice would be to say that the courts are morally and legally bound to protect the underdog – those citizens who wield little power, those who are in a tiny minority and those who espouse uncommon and unusual causes like having compassion for living creatures. The recent judgement by Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan of the Supreme Court shows a severe disdain for such an understanding of justice. The underdog the judges came down heavily upon was quite literally the street dog, and the citizens who take care of them. On Monday (August 11), the Supreme Court bench directed the Delhi government and authorities in adjacent Ghaziabad, Noida and Gurugram to capture all street dogs in the Delhi-NCR region, numbering in lakhs, and permanently confine them in dog pounds to be erected outside of the city. Indeed, large sections of Indian society have entrenched negative views on street dogs. Most people look at the ever-present canine resident of their neighbourhoods with fear and loathing. They say this creature is dangerous. They say it bites. In contrast, women, men and children who tend to street dogs are significantly fewer. There are no statistics to indicate their actual number. This relatively small group perceives the street dog as a being that is remarkably capable of bonding, love and resilience. Faced with these diametrically opposite views, a potent arbiter is obviously expected to listen patiently to all stakeholders. Instead, the Supreme Court bench refused to consider any applications filed by multiple parties who wanted to make a case for science-backed solutions to bring down dog populations humanely. In violation of the Animal Birth Control Rules of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, the bench said, 'We have noticed some unreasonable and absurd rule that you pick one dog, sterilise them and bring them back to the same place. We fail to understand why you bring them back … Forget the rules and face reality. These dogs are to be rounded up and captured immediately by whatever means.' Also read: Should the Dogs Go to Pakistan? Ignorance combined with a stupefying unwillingness to learn the scientific nuances of dog behaviour and the movement of animal populations while performing such a vital decision-making role cannot be justified. Had the honourable judges allowed dog behaviourists and animal carers to speak, they would have come to know that street dogs are not intruders; rather, they are original inhabitants who intently guard their space, thereby averting the entry of other dogs to their area. A forced removal of street dogs from the Delhi-NCR region would make the arrival of dogs, pigs or monkeys from other cities, villages and towns practically inevitable. If with a magic wand, the government of Delhi is able to remove all of these animals, piles of garbage would still attract scavengers like rats and most definitely disease-causing bacteria. Also, not letting animal carers and welfare organisations be heard in the apex court is a serious blow to a citizen's fundamental right to seek justice. Where shall aggrieved parties go if they are being turned away from the highest body meant to administer fair legal judgements? Citing lines from The Good, The Bad and the Ugly, a Hollywood western film, Justice Pardiwala said, 'If you have to shoot a man, shoot and don't talk … So, no talk. It is time to act, and now.' This casual reference to trigger-happy shooting in a western movie reeks of vigilante justice. A parallel diktat was passed by Turkey's parliament last year that required municipal bodies to capture millions of stray dogs and put them in shelters. In a moving essay titled 'When All Else Fails, Blame the Dogs' published in the New York Times, author and journalist Kaya Genc says, 'I also can't shake the sense that for the government, this is not really about the dogs. Mr Erdogan long ago mastered the art of scapegoating.' When the economy is faltering, and governmental services, including health, education and drinking water are abysmal, what better way to redirect the wrath of an irate populace than to label the low-ranking street dog as dangerous. The order that mandates the capture and confinement of street dogs follows the Supreme Court's suo motu cognisance of a news item that had reported the death of a six-year-old girl due to rabies. Senior political leader and animal rights advocate Maneka Gandhi has said that the girl's parents confirmed she had actually died of meningitis. This suggests the possibility of inadequate fact-checking by the media outlet where the news had first appeared. This, too, is sadly predictable in an age where news media routinely frame events in a sensational manner to attract more readers. So, it bears saying that two crucial pillars of our democracy – the press and the judiciary – failed to employ the discipline of verification in their processes. Without verification, there is no truth. And without truth, there is no justice. A more enlightened approach would have been to guide the state government to ascertain the veracity of every dog bite complaint and to make a distinction between the percentage of dog bites due to house pets and those ascribed to street dogs. Not every dog bite complaint is bona fide. In a report published in Scroll in October 2023, Keren Nazareth of the Indian unit of the Humane Society International, an animal welfare organisation, pointed to data from her team's on-ground evaluation of dog bite complaints. 'We found that in Lucknow, out of 1,322 dog bite complaints received between April and August in 2023, only 83 were based on actual bite cases,' she said. According to one estimate, rabies accounts for approximately 5,700 deaths in India every year. But it is also true that India has registered a 75% drop in rabies-related deaths in recent years. Also read: Supreme Court's War on Delhi's Stray Dogs is Misguided and Legally Problematic The apex court could have also directed a structural overhaul of the municipal processes that would result in efficient animal birth control programs. It is imperative to place checks and balances to hold civic bodies accountable for their veterinary activities. Finally, ascribing culpability to animal rights activists for rabies deaths is another erroneous assumption made by the bench. The judges asked if those who fight for the welfare of street dogs would be able to bring back children lost to rabid dogs. The bench must know that many citizens who feed street dogs get them sterilised and vaccinated as well, thereby making their cities safer. Yet they are made to feel like fugitives for the simple act of giving food to the hungry. They are asked to take the dogs home. Many do. One or two dogs, depending on the size of their residence. But several carers look after more than two or three dogs. Their houses are unlikely to accommodate all their furry friends. Undoubtedly, anyone who lives on the streets is worthy of our compassion, whether human or animal. Why should kindness be criminalised? One of the most intrinsic qualities of being human is to care for someone who can do nothing in return. Indeed, maintaining a balance between public convenience and compassion is essential. Even so, the repeated requests of animal carers to designate suitable stray dog feeding spots are ignored, delayed or even opposed by resident welfare associations. These citizens invest their time, money and effort in this cause, and often find themselves overstretched and fatigued in a largely solitary initiative. They want the canine population to go down more than anyone else. But in a scientific and humane manner. A just judiciary would agree. Anjali Lal Gupta teaches at the Department of Communication, University of Hyderabad. The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments. Advertisement
Mint
an hour ago
- Mint
Jaishankar heads to Russia soon after Chinese FM lands in India next week amid Trump tariff row. What's on the table?
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will travel to Russia next week to hold crucial talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on 21 August. Before the two leaders meet in Moscow, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit India on 18 August to hold border talks with National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval. India's diplomatic engagement with Russia and China comes as US-imposed tariffs have strained New Delhi's ties with Washington, DC. In fact, government is yet to take a final call on the trip, on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's scheduled visit the United States for the United Nations General Assembly next month, according to sources. Jaishankar's trip to Russia comes days after NSA Doval travelled to Russia and met President Vladimir Putin and several top-ranking officials. People familiar with the external affairs minister's trip to Moscow told news agency PTI that the the two sides are also likely to finalise various elements of Putin's visit to India later this year. Deputy spokesperson of Russia's foreign ministry Aleksey Fadeyev said in Moscow that the heads of the two countries' foreign offices will discuss "most important issues of the bilateral agenda". Jaishankar will be on a two-day visit to Russia and is likely to call on Putin, as well as hold wide-ranging talks with Foreign Minister Lavrov. The external affairs minister is also expected to co-chair the 26th session of the India-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic, Scientific-Technological and Cultural Cooperation. The Russian delegation at the dialogue is likely to be led by First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. India's continued energy procurement from Russia is likely to figure in Jaishankar's meetings with Russian leaders in Moscow. US President Donald Trump issued an executive order last week imposing an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods as a penalty for New Delhi's continued purchase of Russian oil. The additional duties raised the overall tariff on India to 50 per cent. India has been defending its purchase of Russian crude oil, maintaining that its energy procurement is driven by national interest and market dynamics. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will be in India on Monday, 18 August to hold border talks with NSA Ajit Doval, days ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's planned trip to China to attend the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The Chinese foreign minister is visiting India primarily to hold the next round of Special Representatives (SR) dialogue on the boundary question, according to sources. Wang and Doval are the designated special representatives for the boundary talks. The NSA travelled to China in December last and held the SR talks with Wang, weeks after Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping decided to revive various dialogue mechanisms between the two sides at a meeting in the Russian city of Kazan. It is learnt that Wang may also hold a separate meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. Narendra Modi is expected to travel to China later this month to attend the SCO summit. As per the plan, Narendra Modi will visit Japan around August 29. After concluding the trip, he will travel to the northern Chinese city of Tianjin for the summit, which will be held on August 31 and September 1. Narendra Modi's visit to China is being planned amid efforts by the two sides to repair their bilateral ties, which came under severe strain following the deadly clashes between Indian and Chinese troops in Galwan Valley in June 2020. The military standoff in eastern Ladakh began in May 2020, and the clashes at the Galwan Valley in June that year resulted in a severe strain in ties. The decision to revive various dialogue mechanisms was taken at the meeting between Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kazan on 23 October 2024. The two sides also initiated several initiatives to rebuild ties, including the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and New Delhi restarting the issuance of tourist visas to Chinese nationals. India and China are set to resume direct flights as soon as next month, Bloomberg reported citing officials in the know. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited China in the last two months to attend SCO meetings. China is the current chair of the SCO.
