HYDERABAD: A writ petition has been filed before the Telangana High Court alleging that the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is illegally detaining community dogs by branding them “aggressive” without any scientific assessment, in violation of animal welfare laws and Supreme Court guidelines.
The petition was filed by Adulapuram Goutham, animal cruelty prevention manager at the Stray Animal Foundation of India (SAFI), against the state government, GHMC, the director of animal husbandry, and the Animal Welfare Board of India.
The petition was filed following a representation by dog feeder Merlin Francis, who witnessed a dog being detained. Goutham said Francis had moved the petition through their NGO.
Goutham alleged that GHMC and its contracted dog-catching teams have been picking up healthy dogs from various localities and confining them in Animal Birth Control (ABC) centres without veterinary examination, behavioural assessment, or legal justification.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, he said ABC centres are meant for sterilisation and vaccination, but GHMC was misusing them as detention facilities. He cited the case of a healthy dog from Mehdipatnam that was confined for 21 days despite adoption papers being shown, and was released emaciated and untreated.
The petition stated that such confinement has led to overcrowding, lack of veterinary care, disappearance of dogs, and even deaths.
Goutham referred to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, the ABC Rules, 2023, and the Supreme Court’s judgment dated August 22, 2025, which clarified that only rabid or genuinely aggressive dogs may be treated differently, while all healthy, non-rabid dogs must be released back to their territories after sterilisation.
“This will compel GHMC to define what constitutes an aggressive dog and ensure the release of all illegally detained animals. The hearing is expected next week,” Goutham said, adding the petitioners are seeking scientific guidelines for behaviour assessment.
