Court takes note of alarming dog bite cases after 6-year-old dies from rabies in Delhi
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday took suo motu cognisance of a media report detailing a dog bite incident that led to a fatal case of rabies, noting that the article contained “alarming and disturbing figures.”
A two-judge bench comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan described the news item as “very disturbing and alarming.” The report referred to the death of a six-year-old girl who was attacked by a rabid stray dog in the national capital.
“The news item contains some alarming and disturbing figures and facts,” the bench said, highlighting that hundreds of dog bite cases are being reported daily in the city and its outskirts, resulting in rabies infections. Children and the elderly are particularly vulnerable to the disease.
Taking note of the gravity of the issue, the bench said, “We take suo motu cognisance of this news item,” and directed the Supreme Court Registry to register the matter as a suo motu public interest petition. “Let this order be placed along with the news report before the Chief Justice of India for appropriate orders,” the court stated.
The development comes shortly after the apex court, on July 15, made sharp observations during the hearing of a separate plea involving allegations of harassment over the feeding of community dogs in Noida. In that hearing, the court asked the petitioner’s counsel, “Why don’t you feed them in your own house?” It added, “Should we leave every lane, every road open for these large-hearted people? There is all space for these animals, but no space for humans. Nobody is stopping you from feeding them in your home.”
The remarks came in response to a petition challenging a March 2025 order of the Allahabad High Court. The petitioner claimed she was being harassed while trying to feed community dogs in accordance with the Animal Birth Control Rules.
