Yet another incident of animal cruelty: Youths in Hyderabad arrested for burning puppies alive

In yet another incident which shows the pathetic condition of animal rights in our country, three people were arrested for allegedly tying three puppies together and then setting them on fire in Hyderabad. According to CNN-News18, the three youths who burnt the puppies alive also shot a video of the incident. The report also said that one of the youths is even heard instructing the others to set the puppies on fire. The video was recovered from a fish stall owner in Musheerabad. Because of the disturbing nature of the video, we are not uploading it. [caption id=“attachment_2905136” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Screenshot from CNN-News18 video.[/caption] Earlier in July, a medical student in Chennai, who had hurled a dog from a terrace, and his friend, who had filmed the incident, were arrested after the shocking video went viral drawing outrage. But the duo was soon released on bail on the same day . The law for animal rights has always been weak in India. If the culprit is a first time offender, the maximum punishment is Rs 50. If the culprit is a repeat offender, the maximum punishment is a fine of Rs 100 and imprisonment for three months. According to the Section 11 of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, if a person “beats, kicks, over-rides, over-drives, over-loads, tortures or otherwise treats any animal so as to subject it to unnecessary pain or suffering or causes, or being the owner permits, any animal to be so treated,” that person shall be punished “in the case of a first offence, with fine which shall not be less than ten rupees but which may extend to fifty rupees and in the case of a second or subsequent offence committed within three years of the previous offence, with fine which shall not be less than twenty-five rupees but which may extend, to one hundred rupees or with imprisonment for a term which may extend, to three months, or with both.” In March this year, a woman in Bengaluru had killed eight puppies by flinging them onto a boulder to teach the mother (of the pups) ‘a lesson’. And the ’lesson’ was given because the mother of the puppies had simply given birth in a drain next to her house. Just a day before that, a man had been caught on camera brutally stabbing three stray dogs and killing a puppy outside Green Park metro station in south Delhi. In July 2015, a man had tortured a dog by whirling it around after holding its legs and then throwing it at a parked car in Delhi. Until the laws against animal cruelty in India do not become stringent, such heinous crimes will not stop taking place. It is high time the government acts on this issue. (With inputs from PTI)