A woman, 35 years old, from Mumbai named Shabista Ansari, is in trouble. She’s accused of hurting a stray dog by pouring a harmful liquid on it. This happened on August 16 around 12:25 PM in a place called Malad. A man named Balasaheb Bhagat, who lives nearby and drives an autorickshaw, told the police about it.
Here’s what happened: There’s a dog called Brownie. It was chasing Ansari’s cat. This made her upset. So, according to a report filed with the police, Ansari poured a strong liquid on the dog near the gate of her building. This hurt the dog’s eye badly, making it hard for the dog to see properly.
The police are taking action against Ansari for being cruel to animals. There are rules about this in two laws, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and the Maharashtra Police Act. Ansari got a notice, which means she’s in trouble legally.
Something like this happened before, in March this year in Hyderabad. Bad people hurt a dog using the same kind of harmful liquid. Another sad thing happened in Mumbai in 2020. A couple hurt a stray dog really badly because they didn’t like it being near their house. The dog lost both its front legs and an ear because of that attack.
The Bombay High Court, which is an important court in Mumbai, said earlier this year that it’s not right to hate stray dogs and treat them badly. The court said it was against the rules and what our country’s Constitution says.
The court also mentioned that it’s the responsibility of groups that take care of neighborhoods to make sure stray animals have food and aren’t treated badly. These groups are called Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs).
