Introduction
In August 2025, the Supreme Court of India passed a landmark order wherein it addressed one of the most concerning issues in society, that is, stray dog attacks in the Delhi NCR(National Capital Region). This was addressed due to heinous attacks being inflicted on children and other vulnerable individuals who are falling victim to dog bites(from the dogs that are not vaccinated, which increases the risk of rabies). Therefore, in order to address this particular issue, the judiciary stepped in with a suo motu (“of its own accord”) action and termed it a “rapidly escalating menace.” And ordered to relocate all the stray dogs to a shelter home in order to curb this particular issue. This decision of the honourable court is having a huge backlash from the general public of the country, as this order is risking the lives of the stray dogs and is totally against animal rights.
The triggering point
On July 28, 2025, The Times of India issued a news article titled “City Hounded By Strays, Kids Pay Price”, wherein it clearly documented the statistics of daily dog bites in Delhi, whose figures went up to 2,000 and with more than 20,000 cases nationwide. These bites are resulting in an increase in rabies cases.
This particular article prompted the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance of the issue, registering a public interest petition and calling upon government authorities to explain the steps being taken to curb this crisis.
Public Reaction
This order by the Supreme Court stated that the stray dogs should be relocated. Has been a huge public outcry. Meanwhile, the authorities in Delhi have started a scheme for rehabilitating stray dogs, but the Court questioned its effectiveness and set public safety as the first priority rather than the dogs.
Supreme Court's Directions on August 11, 2025:
On August 11 2025, a two-judge bench (Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan) issued sweeping directions:
These measures were taken and designed by the Honourable Supreme Court of India to rapidly take action and clear NCR streets of strays and curb the alarming spike in dog bites and rabies cases.
Legal and Social Debate
This particular order by the Supreme Court on August 11 was not the first on the stray dog issue. There had been many previous benches which have emphasised humane treatment, sterilisation, vaccination, and adherence to the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules, 2023. These precedents had prevented indiscriminate killing or relocation of animals. Critics pointed out that the new order violated both legal precedents and India’s constitutional commitments.
Backlash from Civil Society
Animal rights organisations, activists, and some politicians are criticising this order of the judiciary. Groups such as PETA India called the order “impractical, illogical, and illegal,” stating that sterilisation, community care, and vaccination are effective, humane, and legal approaches to this issue rather than relocating. There are protests seen near India Gate, with activists demanding reconsideration of the order by the Supreme Court.
Prominent politicians, including the leader of the opposition, Rahul Gandhi, have raised their concerns over cruelty and demanded a balance between public safety and animal welfare. Furthermore, there was a huge discussion on Social media, with many supporting the Court’s prioritisation of human life, while critics criticised the same.
Supreme Court's Viewpoint
The Supreme Court argued that the rampant stray dog population gravely undermined this right; moreover, India’s increased share in global rabies deaths, raised by the dog bites, has a significant chance of becoming an endemic crisis. Moreover, if we talk in terms of constitutional rights, the right to life under Article 21 is being compromised as the threat of dog bites compromises the footing of children and elderly individuals outside their houses.
Review by a Larger Bench
Given the huge backlash and allegations of a compromised justice system by the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice of India, B.R. Gavai, transferred the case to a three-judge bench for a reconsideration of the case by analysing the two sides again. The expanded bench reserved its order after hearing the arguments of both sides and considered pleas to stay the directions of the order given earlier for the immediate removal of strays.
Failure of the Governance
The Supreme Court’s order has significantly highlighted failures in governance, city planning, administration and animal management. It is the responsibility of the government to curate the required shelters, allocate funding for animal welfare and ensure public safety. Moreover, in order to have an effective response to the lacunas, there should be a long-term approach to be taken, such as sterilisation and vaccination of the dogs. The government is to be held liable if the implementation of these strategies is compromised in any way.
Conclusion
The Supreme Court’s judgment on stray dogs is a significant moment in the Indian legal system. As the judiciary has prioritised the safety of the citizens, especially the vulnerable section(Children and elderly citizens). Furthermore, the court has raised one of the most important concerns, which has the potential of becoming an endemic threat. Hence, there was a need to attract the attention of the political leadership to this issue to curb it.
As the case moves before the larger bench, the debate between public safety and animal rights has intensified and remained unresolved. The decision by the three-judge bench will be a very significant one. Lastly, this particular issue can’t be solved without the consolidated efforts of the judiciary, policymakers, legal experts and the citizens(institutions). Therefore, we must work towards solving these issues in a contributing manner, wherein each institution is contributing to ensure that both the public interests and animal rights are protected.
Reference:
1. https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2025/08/14/supreme-court-stray-dog-case-development-and-updates/
2. https://www.barandbench.com/news/stray-dogs-case-live-updates-from-supreme-court
