CHENNAI: Two dog catchers on contract with Tambaram Municipality were dismissed on Wednesday, after a video of them dragging a dog down a flight of stairs went viral on social media.
Students from VIT University, where the incident took place, approached Blue Cross, which then registered a case with Thalambur police against the Municipality and VIT University for subjecting the animal to cruelty.
The municipality, which comes under scrutiny for flouting norms, claimed that the dog catchers and the driver of the van acted independently. In a letter, Tambaram Municipal Commissioner K Krishnamurthy said, “The dog vehicle was sent to Vandalur for fixing horn.”
Students said 10 dogs were caught from the vicinity, while one dog was caught from within the university. This incident comes a year after a video of medical students throwing a dog off a terrace went viral.