'Not even in human cases': SC observes surge in pleas over stray dogs case; hearing on Wednesday

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday observed the unusually high number of interlocutory applications being filed in the stray dogs case. It also remarked that these many applications are not even seen in human cases.A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta observed this when two lawyers mentioned the interlocutory application filed by them before the court."So many applications normally don’t even come in cases of humans," noted Justice Sandeep Mehta.Responding to the hearing request of the transfer petition filed by the lawyers, the court stated that the matter was scheduled to be taken up on Wednesday. It also added that all the pleas connected to the case shall be heard on the same day. The top court further assured that the bench will be hearing all the lawyers.A three-judge special bench of Justices Nath, Mehta and N V Anjaria is slated to hear the case.The stray dogs issue is being examined by the apex court in a suo motu case initiated on July 28 last year, following media reports on a spike in dog bite incidents, particularly cases leading to rabies among children in the national capital.Earlier, on November 7, the Supreme Court had taken note of the "alarming rise" in dog bite incidents within institutional premises such as educational institutions, hospitals and railway stations. It had directed the immediate relocation of stray dogs from such areas to designated shelters after due sterilisation and vaccination.It further clarified that the canines would not be released back at the locations from where they were picked up.The court had also directed authorities to ensure the removal of all cattle and other stray animals from national highways, state highways and expressways. Recurrence of dog bite incidents in institutional areas, the SC said, reflected not just administrative apathy but a "systemic failure" to safeguard these spaces from preventable hazards.