Love of dogs versus ire of neighbours

Krishna Chowdhuri with some of the dogs that frequent her home in Chakdah, Picture by Ranjit Sarkar

TT: In certain places it is wrong to love dogs.

Homemaker Krishna Chowdhuri, the 43-year-old wife of a high school teacher in Chakdaha, has been living in trauma since the last week of July when five of her pet dogs were beaten to death by hostile neighbours near her home at Durganagar in Chakdaha, Nadia.

She went to police, who have been dismissive at best, while the neighbours have not only ridiculed but also threatened her for her love for dogs, she said.

The police were compelled to start a probe but it has made life more difficult for her with neighbours becoming more hostile.

Krishna has been an animal lover since childhood, although she does not raise dogs in her home.

“I feel blessed that every day birds visit my house and I feed them grains. Dogs and cats come, too, and get fed. But I never keep them inside my house. I believe in freedom so I have never chained a dog for my security,” she said.

Last year when her house was under construction, two stray dogs took shelter under the roof. Two more dogs joined them. One of the dogs gave birth to five puppies in March.

Krishna looked after them.

Trouble began in June when the puppies grew up a little and started pouring into the adjacent lanes.

“My neighbours were afraid of being attacked by the dogs, even though the animals spent most part of the day in front of my house. When the dogs barked during the night, they said it was ominous. I tried to make them understand but they would be very angry,” she said.

In the last week of July, word spread that the dogs had gone “mad” and were dangerous.

“I visited Chakdaha municipality office to enquire about vaccination for street dogs. But Mithun Sarkar, an officer, said no such provision was available. Before I could make any other arrangement, neighbours started killing the dogs,” she said.

In four-five days, they killed four dogs, she said.

On July 30, when they killed the last one, a puppy, Krishna fell unconscious.

“It was a horrible sight. A mob of about 50 people brutally killed a puppy with bamboo poles, bricks and iron rods. I pleaded with them for the dog’s life but they refused to listen to me,” Krishna recounted, breaking down.

A neighbour who refused to be identified said: “The dogs became a threat to our children. They chased the children dangerously. One had bitten a boy. We suspected the dogs went mad. So they were killed.”

Three days after the puppy’s death, on August 3, Krishna walked into Chakdaha police station to lodge a complaint.

But the duty officer refused to take a complaint. He asked her to leave the police station as, he said, “there was no law for animals” — the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act makes such an offence punishable with fine and imprisonment.

“The officer advised me to chain the street dogs and take them in. ‘Kichu kortey parbo na, kukur ke prem dekhatey holey bendhe rekhe pushun (I cannot do anything, if you love the dogs, chain them and raise them)’ he said,” Krishna added.

Krishna got in touch with Trinamul Congress MLA and former actress Debasree Roy, who is an animal rights activist.

It was only after Roy’s intervention that the police visited Krishna’s home.

“But the officer appeared not at all concerned about the animals. He made a silent gesture and advised me to take the dogs inside the home from concern for the neighbours’ attitude,” Krishna said.

This officer, too, appeared ignorant of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.

“He admonished me in front of the local people who were angry,” Krishna said.

The inspector in charge of Chakdaha police station, Tarakeshwar Mukherjee, claimed ignorance about his officer refusing to lodge a complaint but started a probe under Section 11(1)(A) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.

“I am not aware of any such incident (of police apathy). But if any of my officers has done it, he has done a wrong thing,” he said.

Debasree Roy said: “It is because of the ignorance of police officers about the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, that the offenders are never punished. I am shocked to hear about the case.”

Members of Chakdaha Bigyan O Sanskriti Sangha have decided to start an awareness programme about animal rights in the area.

“We will campaign in the area so that the people can understand that their fear was unfounded but their act could land them in jail,” said the spokesperson of the body, Bibartan Bhattacharjee.

Krishna has requested the police to save the life of the four other dogs, who the neighbours have branded “mad”.