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‘Will play a video in next hearing… ask what humanity is’: SC as petitioners object to MCD’s rules on stray dogs

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta made the remarks after senior advocate Kapil Sibal pointed out that the matter, which was due to come up before a three-judge bench, stood cancelled.

3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Dec 19, 2025 04:16 AM IST

The SC took up the matter suo motu in July this year, after media reports highlighted serious and fatal attacks by stray dogs in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). (Source: File Photo)

The Supreme Court said on Thursday it will consider objections to the rules framed by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on the handling of stray dogs on January 7 as petitioners raised concerns that stray dogs are likely to be removed from streets without shelters.

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta made the remarks after senior advocate Kapil Sibal pointed out that the matter, which was due to come up before a three-judge bench, stood cancelled.

Seeking an earlier date, Sibal said, “The problem is that MCD, in the meantime, has framed some rules which are completely contrary.” He added that the municipal authorities are likely to implement the rules in December. “They will be implementing it, and they will be removing the dogs. They don’t have shelters,” he said.

Justice Nath, however, said, “It’s alright, Mr Sibal. Let them do it, we will consider.” Sibal said “what is being done” is “very, very inhuman.”

Justice Mehta then said, “On the next date, we will play a video for your benefit, and we will ask you what humanity is”.

Sibal said the petitioners, too, will play a video to show what was happening on the ground.

The Supreme Court took up the matter suo motu in July this year after media reports highlighted serious attacks, including those that involved fatalities, by stray dogs in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR).

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A two-judge bench initially ordered the civic bodies in the area to capture and permanently shelter all stray dogs within eight weeks. This directive faced criticism from animal welfare groups, who described it as “too harsh” and impractical.

In response to the public outcry, the Chief Justice of India assigned the case to a three-judge bench presided over by Justice Nath. The three-judge bench modified the order on August 22, staying the directive for permanent sheltering and expanded the scope of the matter to include all states and Union Territories.

In the August 22 order, the apex court also modified its earlier direction barring the release of vaccinated canines from shelters in Delhi-NCR. Terming it “too harsh”, it ordered the dogs to be released after undergoing sterilisation and de-worming procedures.