KARIMNAGAR: Kothapalli police on Saturday arrested four persons for beating a stray dog to death with sticks, dragging it on the road after tying it to a bike, and later dumping it on the outskirts of the town on Independence Day at Sangem junction in Kothapalli mandal.
The police made the arrests after former Union Minister Maneka Gandhi made a phone call to Commissioner of Police V Satyanarayana on Friday night and asked him to take action against those responsible for killing the stray dog.
Maneka Gandhi came to know about it when Hyderabad-based animal protection organiser Prithvi Panniru lodged a complaint with Kothapalli police and then informed her about the incident. The CP directed Kothapalli police to act on the complaint following which they inquired into the incident and made the arrests after registering a case under Section 429 (mischief by killing or maiming animals), of the Indian Penal Code.
The arrested persons are: Md Fakruddin, Md Ameeer, Md Mukeed, and Md Sameer. As part of the probe, police also approached Kothapalli civic body officials who told them that no dog in the town had contracted rabies. The CP suggested that if one faces a problem with stray dogs or pet animals, one should approach the civc body. The killing of animals is violative of the law. He suggested that instead of showing cruelty against animals, people should show affection.