Four booked for hanging pet dog to death in Gzb’s Loni

The Ghaziabad police on Monday booked four persons on charges of killing their pet dog by hanging it outside their house in the Ilaichipur area of Tronica City in Loni in April this year

The Ghaziabad police on Monday booked four persons on charges of killing their pet dog by hanging it outside their house in the Ilaichipur area of Tronica City in Loni in April this year. A video of the gruesome act was widely shared on social media recently, police said, adding that they have taken cognisance of the video, and a probe has found the footage to be authentic.

Four booked for hanging pet dog to death in Gzb’s Loni

“We took cognisance of the video and found that the main suspect had a Dobermann as a pet dog. He said the pet was not keeping well and so he killed it by hanging it outside his house. This cannot be justified and strict legal action will follow. We have also registered an FIR against four persons on a complaint given by one of their neighbours,” said Iraj Raja, superintendent of police Ghaziabad (rural).

The police have identified the four suspects as Dheeraj Kumar, his son Atul Kumar, and Dheeraj’s two nephews Sumit and Nikhil.

Police said \an FIR was registered at Tronica City police station under section 3 and section 11(1)(i) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, which deals with cruelty against animals.

“An investigation is underway and teams have been formed to nab the four suspects, who are presently on the run,” said Arvind Pathak, station house officer (SHO), Tronica City police station.

“A resident from the area shot the video. He kept the video with himself until now but it somehow got leaked online recently and it was brought to our knowledge as well. We alerted the police on social media and an FIR was registered. The incident was gruesome and was caught live on camera,” said Lomesh Kumar, a resident of Ilaichipur, who filed a police complaint after he came across the video last week.

Animal activists have expressed shock over the incident. “I have seen the video and it is barbaric. Those who are involved seem to be of a criminal mindset and should be given the strictest punishment possible. I have also tweeted the video to the higher authorities so that stringent action is taken against the four suspects,” said Ruchin Mehra, a Ghaziabad-based animal activist and lawyer.