News Courtesy – PETA India
Sitapur— After learning about a pregnant mare (female horse) being ruthlessly beaten by her owner using a hoe in Sitapur, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India worked with a local volunteer, Rishab Shukla and senior Sitapur police officials to file a first information report (FIR) against the horse’s alleged abuser. Mahmudabad Police Station has registered an FIR under Section 325 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023 and Sections 11(1)(a) and 11(1)(l) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960, following a complaint from Rishabh Shukla and PETA India. The Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer, Sitapur, conducted a thorough medical examination and provided veterinary treatment to the injured horse. The horse is reportedly pregnant, has suffered injuries and has an existing eye condition. Shri Aditya Ranjan, Hon’ble Judicial Magistrate, Sitapur, granted interim custody of the abused horse to animal protection NGO Animal Rahat, allowing her to be moved to an animal sanctuary in Bulandshahr. She is now receiving care, rehabilitation, and a safe environment to recover from the trauma she endured. The accused was arrested and is currently in the district jail in Sitapur.
The whistleblower who recorded the video of the abuse claimed that the owner subjected the pregnant mare to beatings every day after exploiting her for labour.
“The mare has endured unimaginable pain and suffering. Those who abuse animals often move on to harming other animals, including humans. For the sake of everyone’s safety, it is imperative that members of the public report cases of cruelty to animals such as this,” says PETA India Cruelty Response Coordinator Sinchana Subramanyan. “PETA India is grateful to the Court of Judicial Magistrate Aditya Ranjan for considering the mare’s plight and directing her rehabilitation to a sanctuary where she would never face a whip or be forced to work. We also extend our sincere appreciation to Sitapur Police, especially Station House Officer (SHO) Anil Tomar, for his swift action by registering the FIR and sending out a strong message that cruelty to animals will not be tolerated.”
PETA India recommends that perpetrators of animal abuse undergo psychiatric evaluation and receive counselling, as abusing animals indicates a deep psychological disturbance. Research shows that people who commit acts of cruelty to animals are often repeat offenders who move on to hurting other animals, including humans. A study published in Forensic Research & Criminology International Journal states, “Those who engage in cruelty to animals were [three] times more likely to commit other crimes, including murder, rape, robbery, assault, harassment, threats, and drug/substance abuse.”
Rule 3(b) of the Care and Maintenance of Case Property Animals Rules, 2017, framed under Section 38 of the PCA Act, empowers the Magistrate to grant interim custody of seized animals to an animal welfare organisation. There are judicial precedents of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, various High Courts and trial courts concerning interim custody of seized animals being vested with animal welfare organisations until the pendency of trial to avoid further abuse.
PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment or abuse in any other way” – opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview.
