NEW DELHI: In a shocking incident, a pit bull brutally attacked a six-year-old boy and bit off his ear in the Prem Nagar area, the police said on Monday.
The Police Control Room received a call at 5:38 pm on Sunday about a child being severely injured by a pit bull and taken to the hospital by his parents.
The police said that the boy was playing in the street when a pit bull, belonging to one 50-year-old Rajesh Pal, who lives in Vinay Enclave in Prem Nagar III in the Kirari area, attacked the boy.
Pal is the victim’s neighbour and a tailor by profession, a senior police official said. The dog emerged from Pal’s house and violently attacked the boy.
A purported CCTV footage of the incident went viral on social media, in which the boy was seen playing in the street. The dog freed himself from the control of a woman standing nearby and attacked the boy. The dog was seen brutally attacking the boy.
A woman and a passerby managed to free the victim from the dog, who later ran away from the spot. Later, a man was seen coming to the spot and picking something from the ground, which was said to be the victim’s ear.
A neighbour of the victim said that the dog’s owners live in the same area and take it out on the street often. He said that people have made complaints about this dog earlier.
“The dog had attacked some people earlier as well, about which we made complaints to the owners, but they did not pay heed to it,” the neighbour said. The boy’s parents later took him to BSA Hospital, Rohini, with the help of neighbours. From there, he was referred to Safdarjung Hospital, where he is undergoing treatment, the official said.
The police found that Pal’s son Sachin Pal had bought the pit bull. Sachin is presently in jail in a case of attempt to murder, which allegedly took place about 1.5 years ago.
The police has registered a case under Sections 291 and 125(b) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita at the Prem Nagar police station and arrested Rajesh, the official added. The two sections pertain to negligent conduct with respect to animals and rash or negligent act endangering life and safety of others respectively.