Four men ‘hired to shift dogs’ in Uppal’s Southend arrested, police on the lookout for main suspect

According to the police, the men—Tinku, Pradeep, Mahendra and Sandeep, all in the 20-22 age group and residents of Palra village in Badshahpur—were previously employed as security guards in the city.

Four men were arrested on Wednesday under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, for allegedly beating and taking away four stray dogs from Uppal’s Southend, a gated society in Sector 50, earlier this month, the police said. The suspects had allegedly been paid to do so by a resident who, the police said, is at large.

The RWA didn’t respond to repeated calls and texts for a comment on the matter. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

According to the police, the men—Tinku, Pradeep, Mahendra and Sandeep, all in the 20-22 age group and residents of Palra village in Badshahpur—were previously employed as security guards in the city.

The police said the men were identified from the CCTV footage of the incident, which was shared on social media and among residents of the society. The footage shows a group of men beating dogs with sticks and carrying them away in sacks. The police said the guards who worked in areas around the society helped identify the suspects.

“The men said that they were paid ₹9,000 for taking away the stray dogs by a resident of the society. They said they took the dogs and dropped them somewhere else,” investigating officer Madan, who only goes by his first name, said, adding that the resident who paid them to take the dogs away is on the run, and the police are looking for him.

However, Chetna Joshi, an animal rights activist, said none of the dogs have been found yet, and said they might be dead. “The residents, who would feed the stray dogs, have confirmed that none of the four have been found,” she said. She added that some other residents have also been trying to get rid of the stray dogs for a long time.

Residents and animal rights activists said that a notice had been sent in May 2016 to the then residents’ welfare association (RWA) by the Gurugram chapter of People for Animals, stating that the organisation had been receiving complaints that the RWA was trying to dislocate dogs from the society, and warned that any such action would lead to prosecution under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, amended in 2011.

The RWA didn’t respond to repeated calls and texts for a comment on the matter.