Madras High Court takes up suo motu case to protect people from stray dogs in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry

Madras High Court passed a decision suo motu, A public interest litigation (PIL) petition to ensure strict implementation of recent orders issued by the Supreme Court in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry to protect people from stray dogs.

Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan will hear the case on Monday, June 22, 2026. Principal secretaries and secretaries of Animal Husbandry, Health and Municipal Administration departments in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry have been identified as respondents in the case.

On Friday, May 19, 2026, a three-judge panel of the Supreme Court ruled that “uncontrolled dog populations are becoming increasingly feral and such animals have no place in areas densely populated by people because they pose a serious threat to public safety.”

The Bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and NV Anjaria, also wrote: “Compassion for animal life, however important, cannot be construed to compel citizens to endure repeated threats to their lives, safety and bodily integrity… When the safety and lives of human beings are weighed against the interests and welfare of sentient beings, the constitutional balance must necessarily and unequivocally tilt in favor of the preservation and protection of human life.”

The Bench further observed: “This court cannot also remain ignorant of the harsh and deeply disturbing fundamental facts that are unfolding in various parts of the country, where young children are injured, elderly people are attacked, ordinary citizens are left defenseless in public spaces, and even international travelers are subjected to such incidents. If such conditions are allowed to continue unchecked, the inevitable consequence may lead to a regression towards a situation where the Darwinian theory of evolution, i.e. survival of the fittest, will effectively govern civil life and public spaces.”

As per their order, the judges had taken cognizance of a news report titled 2.63 lakh dog bites and 17 deaths recorded in Tamil Nadu in just four months of 2026. Hindu He expressed shock over the 6.25 lakh dog bite cases reported on May 6, 2026 and 34 deaths due to dog bites in the State in 2025.

Citing such alarming statistics from other States, the judges attributed the fact that the problem has reached such a large scale to the failure of State governments and union territories to effectively implement the Animal Birth Control (ABC) framework even after two decades since it was formulated in 2001.

The Supreme Court ruled that stray dogs collected for sterilization from places such as educational institutions, hospitals, sports complexes, bus stops, and train stations do not have an indispensable or absolute right to be released back to the places where they were taken, and that they should only be transferred to animal shelters.

The court also upheld the validity of the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) issued by the Animal Welfare Board of India on November 27, 2025, which expanded the definition of the term ‘institutional premises’ to include public spaces such as religious places, parks, tourist attractions and recreational areas.

The board also recommended the establishment of adequate number of ABC centers in every district across the country, appointment of adequate number of veterinarians and other trained personnel, conduct of regular sterilization and vaccination programmes, removal of stray dogs from institutional premises, establishment of helpline numbers for reporting dog bites, a mechanism for adoption of stray dogs, etc. He emphasized that it was necessary.

He requested the High Courts to take up suo motu PIL petitions as it would be difficult for the apex court to monitor the implementation of its orders across India. High Courts are given the liberty to “extend or adapt the scope of such directions as may be necessary to deal with local circumstances and requirements, without in any way diluting the scope and purpose of the directions” issued by the Supreme Court.