Two people have been arrested after a video went viral in which they were seen punching and kicking a dog at a pet clinic in Maharashtra’s Thane. A police complaint regarding the incident was filed on Tuesday.
The incident took place at Vetic Pet Clinic located at R Mall in Thane. The clinic specializes in grooming and caring for pets.
In the video, a staff member of the pet clinic is seen repeatedly punching the dog, whose breed is a Chow Chow, in its face and back. A man was also seen filming the blows to the dog as the animal struggled.
(The video below contains disturbing visuals. Viewer discretion is advised).
After that, the dog was seen getting off the stretcher and walking out of the room even though the man kicked it. The viral video has triggered outrage from various people, including some Bollywood actors.
When the video went viral on social media, Nilesh Bhange, an office bearer of animal rights organization PAWS, and several others filed an anonymous complaint, an official told news agency PTI.
The police cannot conduct an investigation on an anonymous complaint unless there is a magistrate’s order.
Later, Street Dogs of Bombay, which describes itself as ‘Being the Voice for all Animals’, posted a video of the dog on its Instagram page and said the accused had been arrested.
The dog Tofu, aged three years, is currently in a stable condition, Street Dogs of Bombay said, while thanking the public and police for their quick response to the incident.
Street Dogs of Bombay said the dog’s owner would take legal action against the accused.
“The owner of Tofu will take further action tomorrow morning (Wednesday). Regarding legal proceedings, the PFA team indicated that IPC 429 (committing mischief by killing, poisoning, injuring or doing useless to any animal) may not be applicable, so they are considering using the IT Act for the FIR. We have urged them to also include IPC 511 (punishment for attempting to commit offenses punishable with imprisonment for life or other imprisonment) for attempted animal cruelty,” it said.
