Mumbai Police Register FIR Against Teen for Gouging Out Dog’s Eyes, Beating Him to Death – PETA India Requests a Penalty

After learning that a teen allegedly killed a dog by gouging out his eyes and repeatedly beating him on the head with bamboo, PETA India worked with Additional Commissioner of Police, Western Region, Mumbai, Sandeep Karnik, IPS, and Senior Inspector of Santacruz Police Station Dyaneshwar Ganore to register a First Information Report (FIR) under Section 429 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) as well as Section 11(1)(a) and (l) of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960. We were contacted by local caregivers of the dog from the Bandh area of Santacruz West for help.

PETA India also recommends that the teen undergo psychiatric evaluation and receive counselling, as abusing animals indicates a deep mental disturbance. Research shows that people who commit acts of cruelty against animals are often repeat offenders who move on to hurting other animals or humans. For example, Ameerul Islam raped and killed dogs and goats before being sentenced to death for raping and murdering Kerala law student Jisha. In a study of domestic violence victims, 60% of women said that their abusive partners had harmed or killed their dogs or other animals.

PETA India  has long campaigned to strengthen the PCA Act, 1960, which contains outdated, inadequate penalties, such as a maximum fine of only Rs 50 for convicted first-time offenders, although the IPC does contain stronger punishments. In our recent proposal sent to the central government regarding an amendment to the PCA Act, 1960, we recommended increasing penalties for cruelty to animals to a range between Rs 25,000 and Rs 1 lakh and up to five years of imprisonment. For a cognisable offence or a second non-cognisable offence,  we also recommend seizing animals in a perpetrator’s custody and banning him or her from owning or working with any animal.