During the previous hearing on October 31, a bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta rejected pleas from several states seeking exemption from personal appearance. Justice Nath remarked, “When we ask Chief Secretaries to file affidavits, they remain silent. There is no respect for our order. Fine, let them come—we will deal with them.”
Court’s Earlier Displeasure
On October 27, the Supreme Court had expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of response from most states. The bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and N.V. Anjaria, noted that only West Bengal, Telangana, and the Delhi Municipal Corporation had submitted compliance affidavits detailing action taken under the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules. The remaining states, the court said, had failed to report any progress.
Case Extended Nationwide
In the August 22 hearing, the Supreme Court had expanded the scope of the stray dog case from Delhi-NCR to the entire country, directing that all states and UTs be made parties to the matter. The court reiterated that stray dogs should be sterilized and vaccinated before being released back to their original locations. However, dogs infected with rabies or showing aggressive behavior must be kept in shelter homes.
The bench also struck down a previous order dated August 11 by another two-judge bench that had instructed the permanent removal of all stray dogs from Delhi-NCR residential areas, calling it “too harsh.”
Call for a National Policy
Justice Vikram Nath emphasized the need for a national-level policy on stray dog management, stating that all state and UT governments should be made accountable. The court also suggested that related cases pending in other high courts be transferred to the Supreme Court for a uniform approach. The next hearing was scheduled for October, eight weeks after the last session.
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