Father whose 1.5-year-old child died after being dragged, mauled by stray dogs, moved to Delhi HC for compensation

New Delhi [India], March 2 : The father of an 18-month-old daughter, who recently died due to a brutal attack by a pack of violent and aggressive dogs, has moved to the Delhi High Court, seeking direction from the Delhi Government and other attributes to grant/sanction compensation of Rs 50,00,000/- (Rupees Fifty Lakhs) for the loss suffered by him due to the death of his 1.5-year-old daughter.
Petitioner father raised a pivotal question on public safety and the conduct of the concerned authorities, especially the New Delhi Municipal Corporation, whose primary and mandatory duty is to keep the city and municipality limits clean and free and to remove insanitation, nuisance, etc., including the nuisance caused by the violent and aggressive dogs.
It stated that the said incident has occurred due to negligence and lapse on part of the respondents, as the respondents have the primary, mandatory and obligatory duty to keep the city safe and to remove insanitation, nuisance, etc.
It further stated that due to the negligence and administrative lapse on the part of the New Delhi Municipal Corporation, a frightful incident has happened wherein the 18-month-old daughter of the petitioner was brutally attacked, dragged to a secluded place and mauled by a pack of violent and aggressive dogs.
It is the duty of the state to save and protect the lives of the people, as per Article 21 of the Constitution. That such negligent and administrative lapse on the part of the New Delhi Municipal Corporation has violated the fundamental rights of the deceased child and petitioner herein, enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, stated the plea.
Plea stated that the petitioner is a resident of Dhobi Ghat, Tuglak Lane, New Delhi and belongs to an economically marginalised society. Plea stated that the Tuglak Lane area, where the tragic incident happened, is highly secured and covered by CCTV cameras, as senior bureaucrats and politicians are allotted government accommodations in that area. The said area is also patrolled on a regular basis and officials are deployed for the safety and wellbeing of the residents of the area.
According to the plea, the petitioner and the other residents have raised their voices in the past and have pointed out the increase in the number of incidents/attacks by violent and aggressive dogs on innocent children and the elderly. The concerned authorities have in the past ignored the concerns being raised by the petitioner and the neighbours and have failed to keep the public streets free and safe from the menace of stray animals, particularly the mad, aggressive and violent dogs.
Plea further submitted that there are studies that prove that stray dogs suffering from medical conditions such as liver and kidney disease, eye problems, and diseases that affect their bones and skin become aggressive and uncontrollable. One of the major reasons for the dog menace is non-sterilisation, which is the reason for their unregulated population, stated the plea.
Further non-vaccination of these dogs is another reason that causes serious ramifications due to dog bites, which can lead to serious health hazards such as rabies. Keeping the public streets free and safe from the menace of stray animals, particularly violent and mad dogs, is the primary duty of the municipal body of a locality.
The New Delhi Municipal Corporation, despite repeated complaints, has not taken the requisite and necessary steps to control the situation by capturing and treating the aggressive and violent dogs, which has resulted in the present incident whereby an 18-month-old girl child was mauled to death by the attack of violent and aggressive dogs.
The civic agencies have failed to create a dog shelter and are totally inactive in tackling the menace caused by the dogs.
The courts, through various judicial pronouncements, have issued directions to create dog shelters and sterilise the dogs so they can be kept and fed.