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Why did a man wear a dog costume to Khandwa Collectorate? Here's what happened

A bizarre scene unfolded in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday when a man appeared at the Khandwa Collectorate office wearing a giant dog costume.

Updated on: Aug 19, 2026, 14:08:35 IST
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A bizarre scene unfolded in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday when a man appeared at the Khandwa Collectorate office wearing a giant dog costume. His aim was to highlight the worsening stray dog crisis in the city.

Khandwa dog protest: Why one man wore a dog mask to the Collectorate.
Khandwa dog protest: Why one man wore a dog mask to the Collectorate.

According to an Amar Ujala report, Deepak alias Mullu Rathore, Leader of the Opposition in the Municipal Corporation, led the costume-wearing man right to the officials' table during a routine public hearing. The sight of the man wearing a dog mask turned the otherwise staid public hearing into a unique protest that is now going viral on social media.

Protest against stray dogs and corruption

Mullu Rathore, reportedly the man behind the protest, accused Khandwa Municipal Corporation officials of corruption in the name of sterilising dogs.

Rathore alleged that 40 lakh had been billed for dog sterilisation but no dogs were sterilised. This, he said, had led to rising cases of dog bites in the Madhya Pradesh city.

Rathore alleged that there were large-scale irregularities in the sterilisation scheme. While official records indicated that lakhs were spent on sterilisation of dogs, the ground reality was different. The rising dog stray dog population he deemed directly responsible for cases of dog bites and dogs troubling the residents of Khandwa.

Khandwa Additional Collector Kashi Ram Badole said the administration had received a complaint alleging that a bill of 40 lakh was allocated for dog sterilisation, despite no such procedures being carried out. He said the administration had taken up the matter with the Municipal Commissioner and that action would be taken if the allegations were found to be true.

“Today some citizens of Khandwa came to the public hearing. They had filed a complaint that here, in the name of sterilisation of dogs, a bill of 40 lakhs has been issued, and no sterilisation has been done of any kind, and till now more than 13,000 people have been bitten by dogs. In this regard, we have spoken to the Municipal Commissioner. Whatever appropriate action is required as per the rules will be taken,” Badole was quoted as saying by the Indian Express.

  • Sanya Jain
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Sanya Jain

    Sanya Jain is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times Digital. She has nearly a decade of experience in covering offbeat stories that speak to the everyday experience - from viral videos to human interest copies that spark conversation. Her interests stretch across business, pop culture, social media trends, entertainment and global affairs. Before joining Hindustan Times, Sanya spent two years with Moneycontrol and five years with NDTV. She holds an undergraduate degree in English literature from St Stephen’s College, Delhi, and a master’s in journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai. Sanya has a sharp eye for spotting emerging trends and looking for newsworthy angles to elevate viral posts into meaningful narratives. She was the first one, for example, to cover Narayana Murthy’s remark on 70-hour work weeks that sparked a national conversation. She is equally at ease writing about business leaders as about the common man, about issues of national importance and memes that amuse social media. Sanya enjoys speaking with content creators, newsmakers and entrepreneurs to transform everyday moments into engaging, slice-of-life stories that resonate with readers. When she is not working, Sanya can be found curled up with a good book. Born and raised in Lucknow, she has spent the last several years in Delhi. She is deeply interested in animal welfare and now spends a lot of her time running after her destructive orange cat.Read More

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