The Delhi High Court has sought a swift police probe after a six-year-old boy was severely injured in a pitbull attack in Prem Nagar, directing that the unregistered dog not be released until safety measures are ensured.
Hearing a petition seeking compensation of at least Rs 25 lakh for a dog attack on a six-year-old child that left him with a mutilated left ear, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed the police to take “expeditious steps” in the FIR registered in the case.
The child, an LKG student, was mauled by a pet pitbull on November 23 while he was playing outside his house in Northwest Delhi’s Prem Nagar. According to the plea filed by the boy’s father, the dog had dragged his son across the street, bit off his left ear and caused other multiple serious and grievous injuries to him.
The FIR was registered the same day, and the owner was arrested.
The counsel of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Tushar Sannu, Tuesday informed the court that the pet pitbull was seized by the MCD on November 24, with consent of the owner, and that the civic body acted on the issue as soon as it received the complaint. The court was also informed that the pet dog was unregistered, in contravention of the law.
Justice Sachin Datta, as an interim relief to the petitioner directed the MCD that the dog shall not be released until adequate arrangements are made to ensure that a similar incident does not recur.
The court, however, orally suggested that the claim for compensation would lie before the owner, rather than the government.
The Delhi government’s counsel too told the court that the perpetrator has to pay for the compensation. However the court, addressing the Delhi government’s counsel added orally, “You’ve to take ameliorating measures in consultation with the MCD to ensure this menace (does not occur).”
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The petition noted that this was not the first such incident and that the pitbull has bitten and attacked a number of people. Complaints to the police in the earlier incidents resulted in no action, claimed the petitioner’s counsel.
The child’s father, a daily-wage earner who makes around Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000 a month, sought compensation from the government to cover medical expenses, along with a waiver for out-of-pocket costs for the prescribed medicines.
Justice Datta directed the police to file a status report by the next date of hearing, scheduled for March 2026. The court also issued notice to all respondents, which includes the owner of the pet dog, the Delhi Police Commissioner, ACP of Aman Vihar in Rohini, SHO of Prem Nagar police station and Safdarjung Hospital, where the child was treated.
Sohini Ghosh is a Senior Correspondent at The Indian Express. Previously based in Ahmedabad covering Gujarat, she recently moved to the New Delhi bureau, where she primarily covers legal developments at the Delhi High Court
Professional Profile
Background: An alumna of the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), she previously worked with ET NOW before joining The Indian Express.
Core Beats: Her reporting is currently centered on the Delhi High Court, with a focus on high-profile constitutional disputes, disputes over intellectual property, criminal and civil cases, issues of human rights and regulatory law (especially in the areas of technology and healthcare).
Earlier Specialty: In Gujarat, she was known for her rigorous coverage in the beats of crime, law and policy, and social justice issues, including the 2002 riot cases, 2008 serial bomb blast case, 2016 flogging of Dalits in Una, among others.
She has extensively covered health in the state, including being part of the team that revealed the segregation of wards at the state’s largest government hospital on lines of faith in April 2020.
With Ahmedabad being a UNESCO heritage city, she has widely covered urban development and heritage issues, including the redevelopment of the Sabarmati Ashram
Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025)
Her recent reporting from the Delhi High Court covers major political, constitutional, corporate, and public-interest legal battles:
High-Profile Case Coverage
She has extensively covered the various legal battles - including for compensation under the aegis of North East Delhi Riots Claims Commission - pertaining to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots, as well as 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
She has also led coverage at the intersection of technology and governance, and its impact on the citizenry, from, and beyond courtrooms — such as the government’s stakeholder consultations for framing AI-Deepfake policy.
Signature Style
Sohini is recognized for her sustained reporting from courtrooms and beyond. She specialises in breaking down dense legal arguments to make legalese accessible for readers. Her transition from Gujarat to Delhi has seen her expand her coverage on regulatory, corporate and intellectual property law, while maintaining a strong commitment to human rights and lacuna in the criminal justice system.
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