Kurukshetra: Eight Booked for Beating Dog to Death Following PETA India Complaint
After learning through a viral video that a group of men had beaten a dog to death by repeatedly hitting the animal with sticks, PETA India filed a formal complaint with Ladwa Police Station. After killing the dog, who appeared to be a boxer, the accused wrapped the body in a net and disposed it of at an unknown location.
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Based on PETA India’s complaint, a first information report (FIR) was registered against the eight men alleged to be involved in the killing under sections 428 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, and 11(1)(a) of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960. PETA India is now calling on the police to add sections 201 and 429 of the IPC, 1860, and Section 11(1)(l) of the PCA Act, 1960, to ensure that the perpetrators of this crime are punished to the fullest extent of the law. Section 429 of the IPC is a stringent provision which makes the maiming or killing of any animal a cognisable offence and provides for a jail term of up to five years, a fine, or both.
PETA India recommends that perpetrators of animal abuse undergo psychiatric evaluation and receive counselling, as abusing animals indicates a deep psychological disturbance. Research shows that people who commit acts of cruelty to animals are often repeat offenders who move on to hurting other animals, including humans. A study published in Forensic Research & Criminology International Journal stated, “Those who engage in animal cruelty were [three] times more likely to commit other crimes, including murder, rape, robbery, assault, harassment, threats, and drug/substance abuse.”
PETA India has long campaigned for strengthening the PCA Act, 1960, which contains outdated, inadequate penalties, such as a maximum fine of only Rs 50 for convicted first-time offenders (although the IPC prescribes stronger punishments). In a proposal sent to the central government regarding an amendment to the act, PETA India recommended significantly increasing penalties for cruelty to animals.
