BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court permitted the investigation into the missing 21 stray dogs from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) campus.
The court said that authorities shall not harass the two officers of the defence organisation against whom the case was registered, along with one another. Justice M Nagaprasanna passed the order while removing the interim stay on the investigation. The stay had been granted on March 25. The decision came after hearing a petition filed by Rakesh Kumar Sahu, an Estate Manager, and TG Sudhakar, a Cleaning Supervisor at DRDO. They had challenged the legality of the criminal case. “I deem it appropriate to permit investigation in the crime in question, not for all the offences that are loosely laid, but the offences that would truly come about on investigation.
The petitioners shall not be harassed, nor coercive steps be taken against them on whatsoever ground, but they will cooperate with the investigation in helping the prosecution arrive at the truth”, the judge said while directing that the investigation be completed within six weeks and submit the report.
On March 9, a total of 21 dogs on the inner roads of the campus of DRDO were taken away in an unethical manner and are not to be found even today. Additional Solicitor General of India Arvind Kamat said offences such as false evidence, public nuisance, and criminal conspiracy, as obtained under Sections 240, 325, 270 and 61 (1) of BNS, cannot even remotely connect to unknown acts of these petitioners.
Counsel for the petitioners argued that an investigation is needed to identify who entered the DRDO campus and took away the dogs, asserting that the petitioners cannot be held responsible for their disappearance. Opposing this, GBA’s counsel, Advocate Vaishali Hegde, said no one can enter the campus without permission. The matter was adjourned to August 11.
