300 Stray Dogs Poisoned to Death in Hanamkonda Villages, Sarpanches, Officials Booked

 Warangal: In a shocking case of mass animal cruelty, around 300 stray dogs were allegedly poisoned and killed between January 6 and 8 in Shayampet and Arepalli villages of Hanamkonda district.

Following complaints lodged by animal welfare activists, the Shayampet police registered an FIR against several local representatives, including village sarpanches, their husbands and panchayat secretaries, for their alleged role in the illegal killings.

The incident came to light after animal welfare activists Farzana Begum and Adulapuram Goutham of the Stray Animal Foundation of India visited the villages to verify reports of large-scale dog deaths. According to the FIR, the stray dogs were killed using poisonous injections allegedly administered by two hired individuals.

Police said preliminary evidence indicated that the killings were carried out with the knowledge and involvement of local authorities. As many as nine persons have been named in the case, including the sarpanches of Shayampet and Arepalli, their husbands, the deputy sarpanch of Shayampet, panchayat secretaries of both villages and the two hired men.

The accused have been booked under Section 325 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 11 (1) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. Investigators said phone recordings and witness statements revealed that some of the accused had admitted to the killings during private conversations with activists before the case was formally reported to the police.

The incident drew national attention after former Union minister Maneka Gandhi intervened by speaking to senior police officials. She urged the local police to ensure proper registration of the case and directed that post-mortem examinations be conducted on the animal remains to collect forensic evidence.

Speaking on the incident, Adulapuram Goutham said mass killing of stray animals was not only illegal but also ineffective in controlling their population. He stressed that the only scientific and humane solution was strict implementation of the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules, 2023. He blamed the tragedy on the failure of local bodies and urged the Telangana government to immediately launch large-scale sterilisation and Anti-Rabies Vaccination (ARV) programmes to prevent such incidents in the future.