Bombay HC: Stopping Stray Dog Feeding In Non-Designated Areas Not ‘Wrongful Restraint’ Under BNS

Mumbai, Dec 23: The Bombay High Court has held that stopping a person from feeding stray dogs in non-designated areas cannot amount to wrongful restraint or obstruction under the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Bench Clarifies Scope Of ‘Wrongful Restraint’ Under Law

A bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Sandesh Patil quashed an FIR registered against a 42-year-old Pune resident who was accused of stopping a woman and her friends from feeding stray dogs at the entry and exit gates of a residential society and near a school bus stop.

Feeding At Society Gates, Footpaths Not Protected Activity

“Stopping a person from wrongfully feeding stray dogs in a non-designated area cannot be said to be restraint within the meaning of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita,” the court observed.

Judgment Passed On December 18

The judgment, passed on December 18, clarified that preventing someone from feeding stray dogs on footpaths, society entry and exit points, and school bus stops—where children board and alight—cannot be construed as voluntary obstruction or wrongful restraint.

Accused Only Informed About Non-Designated Feeding Areas

According to the court, the accused had merely informed the complainant and her friends that the places where they were feeding the dogs were not designated feeding spots. “Hence, we find that obstructing a person from feeding stray dogs in a non-designated area cannot be said to be wrongful restraint,” the bench said.

Reliance On Supreme Court Judgments And ABC Rules

The court relied on judgments of the Supreme Court on issues relating to stray dogs, as well as the Animal Birth Control Rules, which provide for the identification of designated feeding areas for stray dogs. The bench emphasised that the alleged obstruction was not aimed at committing any illegal act but was intended to ensure the safety of children residing in the society.

Dog Bite Incidents And Child Safety Cited

“Since there had been incidents of dog bites and attacks in the society, the accused prevented the complainant and her friends from feeding stray dogs there and such obstruction by no stretch of imagination can be stated as illegal,” the High Court held.

Details Of The FIR And Counter Arguments

The FIR had been lodged in January by the Hinjewadi police in Pune under the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. As per the complaint, when the woman went to a residential society to feed street dogs, the accused and other society members objected and allegedly stood in front of her car, preventing her from leaving the spot.

Accused Cites Illegal Feeding And Public Risk

The woman claimed that the accused had wrongfully restrained her from feeding the stray dogs. On the other hand, the man, in his plea seeking quashing of the FIR, contended that the complainant and her friends were feeding stray dogs illegally within the society premises.

He submitted that there were over 40 stray dogs in the society, causing serious hardship to residents, and that several dog-bite incidents had occurred over the past year.

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Feeding Near School Bus Stop Flagged As Risky

He further alleged that the feeding was being done at the society gate and near the children’s school bus stop, posing a risk to residents, particularly children.

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