Woman Charged For Pouring Acid On Dog: Will It Deter Future Crimes Against Animals?

 A 35-year-old woman was arrested in Mumbai today for throwing acid on a dog, police said. Shabista Suhail Ansari, from Malvani, threw acid on the dog which belongs to a family that stays in the same building as her.

According to the police, the woman has been charged with cruelty to animals under several sections of the IPC. The dog suffered severe injuries in the attack and was taken to a veterinary hospital for treatment. The entire incident was caught on a CCTV camera. 

According to reports, the woman was upset because the dog had been playing with her cat. She had apparently warned the dog's owners to keep it away from her cat, but they had ignored her requests. 

The severity of crimes against animals is increasing day by day. Last year, the video of a pregnant dog being bludgeoned to death and then dragged across the field had been doing the rounds on the internet last week. The crime took place in Delhi's Don Bosco Technical Institute and all four perpetrators of the pregnant dog have been arrested.

Students were seen cornering the dog in a tin shed with a hockey stick and an iron rod. Spectators were seen making videos of the event and cheering the abusers on to torture the expecting mother. The dog's repeated cry for help was ignored as the sadists got off on hurting her. The dog was beaten to death by these students and then later dragged across the field and buried. 

There were approximately 25 members present that day. They later started maintaining a lower profile out of fear of getting caught by the police. 

Upon inspection, it was found that the incident took place on October 30. The video was released later and reached a resident of New Friends Colony who registered a complaint thereafter. The case was registered under sections 34 and 429 of the IPC (Indian Penal Code) and other required sections of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal Act. 

When the police got to investigating it was a weekend and the Institute was closed. However, the police force reached out to the director and a member thereafter came forward identifying one accused. The accused was identified as Avinash Minj who confessed to his crimes. Avinash fearing his arrest had switched off his phone but was caught near his house in Khanpur. On being interrogated, he revealed the names of the other perpetrators involved in the crime. The names were Guruvanchan, Rahul Kujur, and Anish Horhoriya. All four of them are students of the Institute. Guruvanchan hails from Uttar Pradesh, Kujur from Jharkhand, and Horhoriya from Uttarakhand. These three do not have records of any previous crime. Guruvanchan and Kujur are 19 years of age, Anish is 18, and Avinash 24 is the oldest among the perpetrators.

Upon further inspection by the task force, they discovered the scene where the crime took place. After some searching, they came across the tin shed where blood stains were found. This evidence has been collected by the forensics team. Based on Avinash's confession the police were able to dig out the victim's carcass. 

Currently, all four perpetrators are in police custody and are awaiting trial. 

Suggested Reading: Humanity Still Alive: Man Rescues Pet Dog From A Waterlogged Area

Perpetrators Of Pregnant Dog Arrested: But Can Justice Be Sought? 

Section 34 of the IPC states that the punishment for crimes committed by several persons to reach a common objective is imprisonment for a maximum of six months, a fine, or both. 

Section 429 of IPC states that anyone who kills an animal of a value of or above Rs. 50 can be imprisoned for a maximum period of five years, pay a fine, or be subjected to both. Section 429 is a bailable offence. 

Do Indian Pariahs who live on the streets have a value allocated to them that rises beyond 50 INR? And if an offence is bailable and the accused escapes with a fine, then what justice can be sought for the deceased? 

The maximum fine for animal cruelty in India as laid down by the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act of 1960 is 50 INR. With these ridiculously low fines as penalties for the accused, how can one expect crime rates against animals to go down? 

Like many laws in India, our laws for animal cruelty in India need to be revised in accordance with the rate of crimes and the nature of crimes taking place. Until such monstrous actions are discouraged by stricter laws true justice cannot be sought for many like the deceased.

The views expressed are the author's own.