HAIL THE DOG – JAIL THE HOUND

Donald Duck Trump has made a laughing stock of his country. Far from making it great again he is taking it down into the dumps. Are we Indians heading in the same direction?

It would seem so, from the way we are treating our dogs. Thanks to the latest order from the Supreme Court, dogs are now our most valued citizens. Outraged middle class dog lovers were out on the streets of Delhi protesting the previous order of 11^th August by a two-judge bench that had taken cognizance of the stray dog menace. It ordered them to be impounded, sterilized and vaccinated.

Eleven days later a three-judge bench modified the previous order describing it as impractical to impound over one lakh dogs in two month’s time. Now after sterilization and vaccination the docile dogs would be returned to their original localities from where they were picked up. The court further ordered that this order would be applicable across the country and not just the Delhi/ NCR region. It also ordered that no one was to feed stray dogs on the roads, but only in designated feeding areas! Pray tell me how practical is this fresh order?

One order gave them dormitories; the next one gave them refectories. All hail to the Indian stray dog. They are now the first citizens of India. Perhaps the Republic Day Parade 2026 will be led by a contingent of “docile” stray dogs, possibly under the watchful eyes of the Supreme Court. Hey, there are millions of fellow Indians living below the poverty line, not just in the NCR. What about dormitories and refectories for them? Does India’s middle class care more for dogs than for human beings? 

Maneka Gandhi and her nephew Rahul both rooted for the canine cause. Fair enough; but can it be at the expense of horrendous attacks on vulnerable human beings? The USA had a movement “Black Lives Matter”. The Indian version could well now be “Dogs’ Lives Matter”.

This reminds me of the 2000 song by Baha Men “Who Let the Dogs Out?” We Indians have the answer to that – the holier than thou middle class and the pressure that they brought to bear on the judiciary.

I will here make a comparison with stray cattle in U.P. When Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister, cracked down on illegal cattle smuggling, the cattle owners simple released their cows that had run dry onto the roads and fields, causing a major ecological disaster. The U.P. Government has subsequently spent crores of rupees for impounding and feeding stray cattle, and placing them in gaushalas that now serve as both dormitories and refectories. The point here is that where there is political will there is a way. The same principle could verily have applied to the two-bench order for dogs.

As for the stray cattle, I have some reservations that may not go down well in some quarters. If India is today the world leader in milk production, thanks to Padmavibhushan Dr Verghese Kurien of Amul fame, it was because of buffalo milk. The dairy sector prefers buffaloes to cows, because of higher milk yield and fat content, as also the sale value of the buffalo that has gone dry. Its meat, hide, bones and hooves all have commercial value. So the dairy owner is not at a loss. 

In contrast when a cow goes dry it becomes an overnight liability, so it is abandoned. A government that chooses religious beliefs over economic realities picks up the tab with tax payers’ money. In a secular country is it proper for the government to propitiate a particular community’s religious sentiments?

I daresay that this also exposes the hypocrisy of the cattle owners. One day the cow is your mother, the next day it is a bother to be passed on to the government. Ironically most of those who rear cows are Hindu Ahirs. In contrast Muslim Gosis choose buffaloes, for reasons aforementioned. 

Should the liability for caring for a dry cow not vest in the owner of the cow who for years literally milked it dry? Having benefited from the sale of its milk, is it not now incumbent on them to take responsibility for the dry cow? Why palm it off on to the government?

Not just cows and dogs, what about monkeys and rats, both of which again are considered sacred? They are vermin that destroy more than they consume. One cannot walk down the prestigious Mall Road in Shimla without being violently attacked by monkeys. Will the Hon’ble Supreme Court please take suo moto cognizance of these threats to society? Or should we stoically say, “Human lives don’t matter because religious beliefs are paramount and sacrosanct”. 

The headline of this article also stated “Jail the hound”. As we know the hound is a dog breed, used primarily for racing or hunting. Since hounds have a heightened sense of smell they can identify their prey like rabbits or foxes. Till not so long ago this was a favourite sport of the British nobility. 

Journalists, especially investigative reporters, are often referred to as news hounds, because of their ability to ferret out a good story. Sadly, in our country, the media is under constant attack, the latest being a case filed against YouTuber Abhisar Sharma. Several YouTube channels have been shut down by a government that is intolerant of contrarian views or objective criticism. Countless journalists and human rights activists languish in jail without bail, despite the Supreme Court’s sonorous sermons that bail is the rule and jail is the exception. 

The most tragic case is that of the octogenarian Jesuit priest Stan Swamy arrested on frivolous and fabricated charges of being a Naxal sympathiser. He was so frail that he could not even drink water without a sipper or a straw. But the mighty Indian state felt threatened by him, letting him languish in jail where he eventually died without an opportunity of being heard. 

Contrast this with the overnight bail granted to Arnab Goswami by the Supreme Court, possibly because his war cry “The Nation Wants to Know” was limited to praising the Prime Minister. Double standards. 

A disclaimer before I sign off. I respect all religious beliefs. My objection is only to a purportedly secular government propagating a particular religion’s sentiment, that too with tax payers’ money.

As for dogs, I am not just a dog lover. I am also a nature lover. My garden is full of large trees that house a variety of birds and squirrels. The crows and squirrels nest in the tall Ashoka trees, while the bulbuls, doves and sparrows choose the safer confines of the thorny bougainvillea trees (not bushes).

Despite that, I have a hierarchy of values, practicing what I preach. Human life and dignity are paramount. I have picked up “stray” human beings, destitutes from the roadsides and taken them to the dormitory and refectory of Mother Teresa’s homes. During Covid I helped in little ways “strays” who were trudging long distances to their homes. On the road I also help “strays” who have run out of petrol for their two-wheelers. Though my car is diesel I always carry a bottle of petrol for such exigencies. 

We don’t need the Supreme Court to tell us how to help “strays” in our society. Our conscience should suffice. By all means do look after stray dogs, but don’t miss the wood for the trees. There is no dearth of “strays” crying out for justice or basic human dignity. Let us make India great again, but not the Trumpian way.