A Mumbai Court has fined a 65-year-old man ₹30,000 after he was found guilty of kicking a female dog to death. The accused, Kailash Singh, was convicted under Section 429 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Sections 11(1)(a) and 11(1)(1) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 (PCA Act).
Judge Ruchi Bhagat delivered the judgment, stating that the accused did not deny the act of kicking the dog. The court emphasized that the prosecution had established Singh’s guilt beyond any reasonable doubt. Singh, who argued he kicked the dog in self-defense, failed to provide any defense witnesses or substantial evidence to support his claim.
The incident dates back to 2020, when a neighbor informed the complainant about seeing Singh, a fellow resident, kicking the dog. By the time the complainant arrived at the scene, the dog had already died. CCTV footage confirmed the act, leading to the registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against Singh.
Singh’s defense included a discrepancy claim regarding the dog’s color in the photograph versus the CCTV footage. However, the court dismissed this argument, noting that the burden of proof lay with the accused as per Section 106 of the Indian Evidence Act, which Singh failed to meet.
The court found the evidence from the complainant, an eyewitness, and the CCTV footage compelling. The judgment concluded that Singh’s actions directly led to the dog’s death, affirming his guilt.
Additional Public Prosecutor Kiran Vekhende represented the state, while Advocate SK Pandey appeared for the accused.
