Target: H. Rajesh Prasad, Chief Secretary, Union Territory of Chandigarh, India
Goal: Demand an independent inquiry, suspension of responsible personnel, and immediate release of CCTV footage following the alleged custodial death of a healthy stray dog at a state-run facility.
A healthy stray dog reportedly died inside a government-run animal shelter after suffering repeated seizures for over six hours with no veterinary treatment — despite a vet and supervisor being present at the facility throughout. According to eyewitnesses, the dog was visibly mobile and healthy when picked up from the street, yet was left to convulse untreated in a kennel from early afternoon until it was found unresponsive during evening feeding rounds. The animal was declared dead within minutes — and its carcass was allegedly left inside the kennel overnight, unattended until the following morning.
According to documented observations and eyewitness accounts, the dog suffered its first seizure within minutes of being placed in the kennel, with a second seizure recorded just ten minutes later. Despite this, the attending veterinarian reportedly conducted his evening round without examining the visibly distressed animal, and the facility supervisor allegedly failed to even register the new arrival in official records. This apparent institutional failure is particularly disturbing given that the very veterinarian who supervised the dog’s capture had appeared before the Punjab and Haryana High Court just days earlier, giving assurances about animal welfare standards at the facility. Adding to the gravity of the case, former Union Minister Maneka Gandhi has stated that the dog had previously been held at the same facility, released, and then picked up again just three days later — with no documented justification for the repeated capture.
This alleged custodial death did not occur in isolation. The facility has been under active High Court monitoring for months following a series of welfare failures, including a pregnant dog reportedly kept in illegal confinement for nearly 60 days — twenty times the permissible limit — and consuming her own newborn pups out of starvation and stress. The Chief Secretary of Chandigarh must order an immediate independent inquiry, suspend the personnel allegedly responsible pending investigation, and ensure the full release of CCTV footage as directed by the High Court.
PETITION LETTER:
Chief Secretary H. Rajesh Prasad,
We are writing in urgent response to the reported custodial death of a stray dog at the SPCA facility in Chandigarh — a dog that was healthy and mobile when captured, then allegedly suffered repeated seizures inside its kennel for over six hours and left without veterinary examination despite a vet being present on the premises. According to eyewitness accounts, the dog’s entry was not even registered in facility records, and its carcass was left unattended in the kennel overnight. This is not an isolated incident — it is the latest in a deeply troubling pattern of alleged neglect at a facility under active High Court supervision.
We are gravely concerned that personnel who gave welfare assurances to the Punjab and Haryana High Court on March 11 were present at the very facility where this dog allegedly died without receiving a single veterinary examination. The High Court has already directed the release of CCTV footage and appointed a local Commissioner to monitor compliance — yet alleged failures continue. Former Union Minister Maneka Gandhi has publicly called for the removal of the veterinarian and dog-catcher allegedly involved, describing the repeated capture of this animal as arbitrary harassment with no legal justification.
We respectfully demand that your office immediately order a time-bound independent inquiry into this death, suspend all personnel allegedly responsible pending its outcome, ensure the immediate release of CCTV footage as directed by the High Court, and urgently frame a standard operating procedure for animal handling, transport, and emergency medical care in line with Animal Welfare Board of India guidelines. This dog allegedly arrived healthy and was dead within six hours — those responsible must be held fully accountable.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo credit: Ștefan Jurcă
