In an extremely inhumane incident, at least 15 sterilised and vaccinated stray dogs in Malappuram in Kerala were hammered to death. The incident happened last Thursday in Thurakkal region near Manjeri bypass road. Activists claim that it allegedly took place with the knowledge of the Manjeri municipal authorities.
The news surfaced when carcasses of 15 dogs were spotted in a tipper vehicle and a heartbreaking video of the carcasses went viral. The truck, in which they were found, belongs to the Manjeri Municipality.
An NGO, The Humane Society International, India lodged a complaint at the Manjeri police station and they filed an FIR against the inhumane killing of the animals. The organisation conducts sterilisation drives for stray dogs every two years in Manjeri. Reports claim that there were tags on the dogs' ears which prove that they were sterilised.
Addressing the allegations that the Manjeri Municipality had knowledge of the incident, VM Subaida, the municipal chairperson, said that they did not have any knowledge or role in the incident. However, she did say that the municipal truck was used to bury the carcasses.
Subaida also confirmed the location of the incident and added that residents have been finding the stray dogs a menace there, Times of India claims.
"We did not issue any directive to kill stray dogs and the municipality cannot take the responsibility of the culling done by any group of people," Subaida was quoted as saying by TOI.
An officer at The Humane Society International condemned the killing saying that the dogs were harmless and she did not know why they had to be killed since they were all sterilised.
"The people who killed the animals were not aware of the facts regarding the dogs. It is very unfortunate that the municipality did not take any action on it," she said.
