High Court takes serious note of rising dog bites in Punjab and Haryana

September 15, 2025

Chandigarh: The High Court has expanded the scope of hearing on dog bite cases in Haryana and Punjab. The Punjab Haryana High Court has sought details from the local bodies of both states about the number of dog bite incidents in the districts and the action taken for sterilisation and vaccination of stray dogs.

However, questions have been raised over the dog sterilisation programme initiated by Chandigarh. The programme has come under the scanner of the High Court after allegations of disobeying the directions given in the April 2015 order. During the hearing, the bench made it clear that despite the programme, the number of stray dogs has increased manifold.

The High Court has directed that the contempt petitions against the 2015 orders relating to stray dog ​​bite cases should now be sent to the Supreme Court for hearing.

The move comes after the Supreme Court recently ordered all states, Union Territories and local bodies to become parties to ensure compliance with the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules.

Justice Vikas Bahl said that the Supreme Court has further directed that all similar cases pending in the High Courts be transferred to the Supreme Court for consolidated consideration.

On the joint request of lawyers representing several municipal bodies and state governments of Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh, the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed to send the files of contempt petitions to the Supreme Court.

These petitions were filed through lawyers Saurabh Arora and Kunal Malwani. In this case, former MP, animal rights activist and environmentalist Maneka Gandhi was the respondent, who was represented by lawyer Kunal Dawar. At the same time, intervener and animal activist Sunayana Sibal was represented by lawyer Virendra Sibal.

This case arose from Rose Garden

This matter was first brought to the notice of the High Court by Gurmukh Singh. In his petition against the Union Territory of Chandigarh, he had raised the issue of the menace of stray dogs in the city, especially in the Rose Garden of the city. The petitioner had alleged that stray dogs chased him during his morning walk and that several cases of dog bites have been reported in the area.