Will ask states to pay heavy compensation for dog-bite incidents, hold dog feeders accountable: SC
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it will ask states to pay a "heavy compensation" for dog-bite incidents and hold dog feeders accountable as it flagged its concern over the lack of implementation of norms on stray animals for the past five years.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and NV Anjaria said that even dog lovers and feeders will be held “responsible” and “accountable” for dog-bite incidents.
"For every dog bite, death or injury caused to children or elderly, we are going to ask the state governments to pay heavy compensation, as they did not do anything on implementation of norms in the past five years. Also, responsibility and accountability will be fixed on those who are feeding these stray dogs. If you love these animals so much, then why don’t you take them to your house. Why should these dogs loiter around, bite and scare people?" Justice Nath said.
Justice Mehta concurred with the views of Justice Nath and said, “Who should be held accountable when dogs attack a 9-year-old? The organisation that is feeding them? You want us to shut our eyes to the problem."
The top court was hearing several petitions seeking modification of its November 7, 2025 order directing the authorities to remove these stray animals from the institutional areas and roads.
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The top court said the worst part is that a lawyer from Gujarat was bitten in a park and when civic authorities went to catch that animal, the lawyers, who claimed to be dog lovers, attacked the civic officials.
The top court also lamented that for four days, it has been hearing arguments on the issue and was not allowed to proceed further in the matters by activists and NGOs and was not able to hear the views of the Centre and the states.
"Our request to all the lawyers is to allow us to take to task the union, the state authorities and other bodies… Allow us to pass an order. We need to spend half a day with the States and Union. To see whether they have a plan of action or not. The problem has multiplied a thousand times. We just want implementation of statutory provision. Allow us to do that. Allow us to work. Allow us to proceed further," the top court observed during the hearing.
At the outset, senior advocate Arvind Datar, appearing for an NGO, defended the apex court's November 7, 2025 order dealing with institutional areas, arguing that it was fully justified and supported by statutory rules. He contended that there was no need to constitute any new expert committee since reports of the existing committees were already on record.
Justice Mehta remarked that Datar was “the first who has come to the rescue of the order."
Datar argued that stray dogs have no legal right to occupy institutional premises or other public spaces to which people have access. He submitted that dogs do not have a right to be brought back to the institutional area because these animals have no right to be in that place at the first instance.
Datar referred to a separate writ petition filed by conservation groups regarding feral dogs in wildlife areas, especially Ladakh. He told the court that reports placed before it showed the presence of around 55,000 free-ranging feral dogs in Ladakh, posing a grave threat to critically endangered species.
Senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for an animal welfare trust, urged the court to view the matter not merely as a human-versus-animal issue but from the perspective of ecological balance.
During the hearing, Justice Mehta said, "A young counsel just showed us statistics of orphan children on the streets. Perhaps some lawyers could argue for adoption of those children. Since the year 2011 when I was elevated (as a judge), these are the longest arguments I have heard. And till now no one has argued so long for human beings."
Senior advocate Pinky Anand emphasised that the law required animals to be treated with compassion, cautioning against approaches that amounted to culling.
Similarly, senior advocate Menaka Guruswamy and other lawyers made arguments on the issue.
On January 9, the top court said it would not go into the allegations of harassment of women dog feeders and caregivers by purported anti-feeder vigilantes since it was a law and order issue and the aggrieved persons could lodge FIRs about it.
The top court also refused to go into the claims about certain derogatory remarks being made about women on the issue.
Taking note of the "alarming rise" in dog-bite incidents within institutional areas such as educational institutions, hospitals and railway stations, the apex court on November 7 directed relocation of stray canines forthwith to designated shelters after due sterilisation and vaccination.
It also said stray dogs picked up shall not be released back to the place they were picked up from. It directed the authorities to ensure the removal of all cattle and other stray animals from the state highways, national highways and expressways.
The top court is hearing a suo motu case, initiated on July 28 last year, over a media report on stray dog bites leading to rabies, particularly among children, in the national capital.
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854 people held under Operation Gang-Bust 2026 in 2 days: Delhi Police
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has rounded up and arrested 854 people and registered 690 FIRs during a massive, 48-hour anti-organised crime crackdown under their Operation Gang-Bust 2026, carried out across six states ahead of the Republic Day celebrations, officials said.
"This was one of the most extensive coordinated exercises in recent years, conducted from 8 pm on January 9 to 8 pm on January 11, to dismantle organised crime syndicates with footprints in the national capital and the National Capital Region (NCR)," Additional Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Pramod Singh Kushwah said.
The officer said that more than 9,000 personnel drawn from district units, the Crime Branch and the Special Cell were deployed simultaneously to conduct raids on hideouts of major and minor gangs. The coordinated action covered Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
"In just 48 hours, over 4,000 hideouts of organised crime syndicates were raided, and more than 6,500 targeted people were rounded up and apprehended for questioning," said the Additional CP.
He said that sustained field-level coordination was ensured to prevent suspects from escaping or going underground.
As a result of the intensive crackdown, 690 cases were registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Arms Act, NDPS Act, Delhi Excise Act, Public Gambling Act and other relevant laws. Of those apprehended, 854 people were rounded up or arrested.
The police also released a gang-wise breakdown of arrests of shooters and active members of major and minor gangs. A total of 280 arrests were linked to identified gangs, while 207 arrests involved members of minor gangs operating in and around the capital.
Police said the arrested people included shooters, facilitators, logistics providers and associates involved in extortion, arms trafficking, drug peddling and other serious offences.
Police said that during the raids, under the Arms Act alone, 286 cases were registered and 300 persons arrested, leading to the recovery of 122 firearms, 189 knives, 129 rounds of ammunition, over 110 mobile phones and cash exceeding Rs 15 lakh. Two motorcycles and a scooter were also seized in these cases.
In NDPS-related action, 36 cases were registered and 43 persons arrested. The police recovered over 114 kg of cannabis, cocaine, heroin and charas, as well as cough syrup bottles, tramadol capsules, alprazolam tablets and buprenorphine tablets and injections. Cash amounting to over Rs 4.6 lakh, along with a car and a scooter, was also seized.
Action under the Delhi Excise Act resulted in 145 cases and 152 arrests, with the recovery of 28,364 quarters of illicit liquor, cash and vehicles. In addition, 137 cases were registered under the Public Gambling Act, leading to 285 arrests and the seizure of over Rs 5.5 lakh in cash. Under various BNS provisions, 86 cases were registered and 74 arrests made, with recoveries including cash, knives, mobile phones and motorcycles, police said.
Cumulatively, the operation led to the seizure of arms, ammunition, narcotic drugs weighing around 117 kg, psychotropic substances, illicit liquor, multiple vehicles and cash totalling over Rs 25.75 lakh, the police said.
Sharing details of last year's operations, the officer said that in the four-month period between September 1 and December 31, the Delhi Police carried out a series of targeted actions against gangsters and their networks.
During that period, seven gangsters were killed, and 21 were injured in exchanges of fire with the police. A total of 34 gangsters were arrested in cases under the MCOCA, while 149 were arrested in non-MCOCA cases. Two gangsters were deported from abroad, and trial in absentia proceedings were initiated against nine absconding accused.
Additional CP Kushwah said that 539 homes and hideouts linked to organised crime syndicates were raided during the four-month drive, leading to the recovery of 118 arms.
"Cash worth Rs 1.014 crore was seized, along with properties including 1.3 kg of gold, 14 kg of silver, eight cars, 11 motorcycles, 22 mobile phones and a laptop was seized," he said.
