The Supreme Court Today (Aug 22) said its earlier order on stray dogs in Delhi-NCR was “too harsh” and has now allowed sterilised dogs to return to their localities. Activists welcomed the “compassionate approach”.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday softened its earlier ruling on stray dogs in the Delhi-NCR region. The court admitted that its earlier decision directing all stray dogs to be permanently shifted to shelters was “too harsh”.
The bench also pointed out that the order dated August 11, which banned the release of vaccinated stray dogs, was passed without properly checking the facilities and manpower available with municipal authorities.
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The judges observed:
“A blanket direction to pick up all strays and place them in dog shelters without evaluating existing infrastructure may lead to a ‘catch-22 situation’ because such directions may be impossible to comply with.”
The bench of Justice Vikram Nath, Justice Sandeep Mehta, and Justice NV Anjaria further explained:
“A holistic approach requires mollification of the directions issued (earlier).”
On Friday, the three-judge bench modified the earlier order. The new ruling said that stray dogs can be released from shelters after sterilisation.
However, the exception will be in cases where the dogs show aggressive behaviour or are suffering from rabies.
At the same time, the court clearly stated that people should not feed stray dogs in public spaces. Instead, special feeding points will be created in every ward. To ensure smooth implementation, the court also ordered a helpline for residents to report violations.
It stressed that these directions will apply across all states and union territories.
Importantly, the court also warned animal activists and citizens not to interfere with municipal staff while they are carrying out dog collection, sterilisation, and release.
This revised order has brought relief to animal lovers who were upset with the August 11 ruling.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi reacted positively, saying the changes show a “compassionate approach“ from the top court, as it balances the safety of people with the welfare of animals.
The earlier ruling came after several incidents of stray dog attacks on men, women, and children in Delhi-NCR, which led the court to direct authorities to pick up all strays. But after protests from animal activists, the court decided to review the case and modify its decision.
Now, the court has made it clear that the Animal Birth Control (ABC) rules will continue to be followed. These rules require that stray dogs, once sterilised, should be released back into the same locality. The judges also warned against blocking the implementation of these services.
Animal rights organisations have welcomed the decision. PETA India celebrated with the words “every dog has her day”.
Former Union Minister and well-known animal rights activist Maneka Gandhi also appreciated the new order but requested the court to clearly define what qualifies a dog as ‘aggressive‘.
CASE TITLE:
IN RE: CITY HOUNDED BY STRAYS, KIDS PAY PRICE
SMW(C) No. 5/2025
READ LIVE COVERAGE-
Last Hearing: Supreme Court Reserves Verdict, No Stay For Now
The Supreme Court on Thursday (Aug 14) reserved its order on petitions challenging its August 11 order to round up all stray dogs in the Delhi-NCR region.
A Bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and NV Anjaria heard detailed arguments but did not grant any stay on the directions issued to municipal authorities.
Appearing for the Central government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said,
“In a democracy, there is one is vocal majority and one who silently suffers. We have seen videos of people eating chicken egg etc and then claiming to be animal lovers. It is an issue to be resolved. Children are dying…Sterilisation does not stop rabies…even if immunised…”
He further stated,
“WHO data shows 305 deaths a year. Most of children are under age group of 15. Nobody is a animal hater…Dogs do not have to be killed…they have to be separated. Parents cannot send children out to play. Young girls are mutilated.”
He added that there was no solution in the present rules, saying,
“Court has to intervene.. this is vocal minority view vs silent majority suffering view.”
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the NGO Project Kindness, requested a stay on the August 11 order, arguing,
“This is first time I hear SG saying that laws are in place but it need not be followed…Question is to who is to comply with it. Question is has the municipal corporation built shelter homes…have the dogs been sterilised? Money has been siphoned off. No shelters are there. Such orders are suo motu. No notice. Now dogs are picked up. You say once sterilised, do not leave them. This need to be argued in depth.”
Justice Nath then remarked,
“Show us the part of the order which is offending to you. We cannot spend the whole day on this.”
Sibal responded,
“Please see para 11(I) directing that all dogs be picked up, rounded up from NCR and put to dog shelters/pounds. These don’t exist. It has been directed to create the same in 8 weeks…after being sterilised, where will they go? All authorities directed to pick up dogs…this direction has to be stayed. What will happen? They will be culled…dogs are kept together…food is thrown and then they attack each other…This cannot be permitted.”
Senior Advocate Sidharth Luthra pointed out that the August 11 order was already influencing other states and High Courts to take similar steps.
Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi said,
“With the best of intentions, all directions put the cart before the horse. All directions presuppose issues…available infrastructure is less than fractional available to accommodate all the dogs. Directions 1, 3 and 4 need to be stayed. SG Mehta did preemptive prejudice. Dog bites exist…but see the parliamentary answers. There are zero Rabies deaths in Delhi… Of course bites are bad.. but you cannot create a horror situation like this.”
Senior Advocate Siddhartha Dave added,
“Nobody from NGOs etc were able to place any record. Take that material from us.”
Senior Advocates Aman Lekhi and Colin Gonsalves also opposed the order strongly.
On the other side, an advocate supporting the order argued,
“We have submitted medical reports of a person who is admitted in Breach Candy hospital…humans are suffering. For every 24 individuals, there is one stray dog. All those who are here must take culpability of attacks as and when they happen…”
Summing up the day’s exchanges, Justice Nath observed,
“Parliament frames rules and laws…but not implemented. On one hand, humans are suffering and on the other hand, the animal lovers are here. Have some responsibility…all those who have filed interventions have to file affidavits and furnish evidence. All of you.”
The August 11 order, passed by Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan, had directed Delhi municipal bodies to capture stray dogs from all areas, prioritising vulnerable zones, and to set up shelters with a minimum capacity of 5,000 dogs in eight weeks.
It also banned the re-release of these dogs, made sterilisation, vaccination, and de-worming compulsory, and required shelters to have CCTV, staff, food, and medical care.
A 24×7 helpline was ordered to be set up to report dog bites, with the capture of offending dogs within four hours, and monthly rabies vaccination data to be published. Obstructing this work was to be treated as contempt of court.
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The order was issued suo motu after the Court noted that over 25,000 dog bite cases were reported in Delhi in 2024 and more than 3,000 in January 2025 alone.
The Court said sterilisation programs had failed over two decades and urgent action was necessary, especially for children, elderly people, visually impaired citizens, and those living on the streets. It warned against “virtue signalling” by animal lovers that ignored the actual danger.
The order triggered large protests from animal rights activists.
On August 14, the case came before Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, who noted possible overlapping stray dog matters before different benches and reassigned it to a new three-judge bench.
READ LIVE COVERAGE:
IN CJI’s BENCH
NEW DELHI: In the Supreme Court, the long-debated issue of stray dogs once again came up for discussion yesterday (Aug 13).
The matter was raised by an advocate who highlighted the court’s earlier judgment on community dogs.
The advocate said:
“This is with regard to community dogs issue… There is an earlier judgment of this court which says there cannot be indiscriminate killing of canines of which Justice Karol was a part of… which says compasion for all living beings has to be there.”
In response, Chief Justice of India BR Gavai pointed out that another bench had already passed certain orders in the matter.
He said:
“But the other judge bench has already passed orders. I will look into this.”
Notably, just a few days earlier, on August 11, 2025, a bench led by Justice JB Pardiwala had directed that:
“All stray dogs in Delhi NCR shall be taken to dog shelters without exceptions.”
This issue continues to attract legal, public health, and animal rights concerns. The earlier judgment, as recalled by the advocate, emphasised that stray or community dogs cannot be killed indiscriminately, and that compassion towards all living beings is a guiding principle under Indian law.
At the same time, civic authorities and residents have been urging for effective population control and safety measures, especially in urban areas like Delhi-NCR where human-dog conflicts have been reported.
The CJI’s remark indicates that the matter may be revisited in light of earlier judgments and the more recent directions by another bench, which could lead to a harmonised approach balancing animal welfare with public safety.
ORIGINAL ORDER OF APEX COURT
The Supreme Court of India on Monday (Aug 11) gave strict orders to the Delhi Government, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), and the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) to immediately start removing stray dogs from every locality of Delhi, starting with the most vulnerable areas and cities.
A Bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan made it clear that no locality should have stray dogs roaming around and there should be absolutely no compromise in this work.
“NCT Delhi, MCD, NMDC shall at earlier start picking up stray dogs from all localities from more particularly vulnerable localities and cities. How to do it is for the authorities to look into and if they have to create a force, do it at earlier. However, this should be the first and foremost exercise to make all localities free of stray dogs. There should not be any compromise in undertaking any exercise,”
-the Bench said.
The judges also warned that anyone trying to stop or create problems in this work will face strict legal action from the court.
“If any individual or organization that comes in the way of picking stray dogs or rounding them up, we will proceed to take action against any such resistance,”
-the Court added.
Along with removal, the Court ordered the Delhi Government, MCD, and NDMC to create proper dog shelters with enough staff to sterilise and vaccinate the animals.
These shelters must also be monitored through CCTV cameras.
“The State of NCT Delhi, MCD and NDMC is directed to create dog shelters and report this Court creation of such infrastructure within 8 weeks. The dog shelters should have sufficient staff to sterilize and immunize. The dog shelter would be monitored by CCTV,”
-the order said.
The Bench also took a strong stand against certain animal rights activists, questioning their role when rabies cases are causing deaths.
“All these animal activists, will they be able bring back who have fallen prey to rabies,”
– the Bench demanded.
The judges further explained that this order is being passed purely for public safety and should be implemented without emotional or sentimental objections.
“We are not doing this for us—it is for the public interest. so no sentiments of any nature should be involved. Action should be taken at the earlier. Pick up dogs from all localities and shift them to far off places,”
-the Bench orally remarked.
The Supreme Court was hearing a suo motu case it had started on its own after repeated incidents of rabies infections and deaths caused by stray dog attacks.
Here are the top statements made by the Supreme Court while pronouncing the judgement:
- We need to pick up round up with whatever means to ensure dog free locality and that’s how children and aged will feel safe.
- Have you seen the classic good, bad and the ugly- when you want to shoot, shoot don’t talk. It’s not the time to talk but act. All these so-called animal lovers, will they be able to bring back those children who have given their lives?
- Municipal Corporation of Delhi is directed to make dog shelters and report about creation of infrastructure within eight weeks. It must have sufficient personnel for sterilised, dogs who would be detained there and not released in public places. It will be monitored by CCTV to monitor that no dogs are taken out.
- Infants and young children, not at any cost, should fall prey of rabies. The action should inspire confidence that they can move freely without fear of being bitten by stray dogs. No sentiments should be involved.
- Create helpline within 1 week so that all cases of dog bites and rabies are reported. Action should be taken within 4 hours to pick up dog after complaint is received and any action of individual or organisation coming in the way will be taken with stern action. The said dog will be sterilised and shall not be released.
CASE TITLE:
IN RE: CITY HOUNDED BY STRAYS, KIDS PAY PRICE
SMW(C) No. 5/2025
READ ORIGINAL ORDER WHICH CREATED HAVOC AROUND COUNTRY:
READ FINAL ORDER OF TODAY (AUG 22):
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