The disbelief that Gautam Sudharshan and Ashish Paul — the two accused of throwing the now-rescued pup Bhadra off a roof, are doctors — is still resounding. Many have expressed outrage over how unempathetic these future ‘healers’ have been.
Though the medical students have been granted bail, rescuers Shravan Krishnan, Jennifer Jacob and Antony Rubin, are trying other legal options. With the price of animal cruelty in India at '50, it’s clear that the law needs to be amended and with the hashtag #Nomore50, being circulated alongside a petition, maybe things are looking up?
Jennifer Jacob, Chennai Adoption drive
We are trying to confirm if the culprits will be remanded to judicial custody and have been working with lawyers for this. On why this case got so much attention on social media, I think it’s because everybody got outraged. Shravan, Antony and I have been pursuing this non-stop. We were at the police station till 2.30 in the morning. With enough publicity on the case, we can bring change in the existing laws on animal welfare and increase punishment.
Bhadra is under foster care as the doctors have advised complete crated rest and no movement. She still has faith in people after all that she’s been through and wags her tail. We will go through our process of interviewing anyone who wants to adopt her stringently.
Vinita Nayar, writer and advocate for animal blood donation
Hats off to Shravan, Jenny and Antony on their efforts… I’m finding an increase in animal activism on social media; whether this is because the number of people abusing animals is increasing or that we’re becoming more aware, I’m not sure. But we’re more sensitive and that’s why I’m optimistic. There’s no going back from here. The laws have to be changed — we can’t brush it off saying it’s only a dog.
Arunodaya Reddy, Owner Pets 101
This wasn’t the first case of animal cruelty to happen — it got so much attention because someone captured the act on video. Our country isn’t an animal-loving one and Chennai is no exception. We still have a long way to go. There’s no legislation to help stray animals either medically or by feeding them.
I have experienced so many cases of people complaining over stray dogs being fed or treated. I am blessed to be a part of a community of many animal-loving people, but it’s a small section of society. First introduce an amendment to the law, then we can expect people to change.
Nivedita Jai Shankar, volunteer at CAD
I have been a part of animal welfare only in the last five years. Since then, I have seen many people give everything to taking care of the animals. There’s participation from all age groups. Of course, few people still are indifferent, but there are enough and more people to make an active change in Chennai. And this isn’t something I have seen elsewhere. Even online, many have come forward to help each other and pass on information about animal laws and care. I’m proud of the city for that.
Ram Kumar, CEO at Social Media Doode
We have come across other cases on animal abuse across social media, but this one was a lethal attempt. People thought the little one was dead. And this case reached the people directly and it was through Facebook that Shravan Krishnan could find the location and name the suspects. Though people say that social media is spoiling people and giving opportunity for crimes, it also has a great many positives, as was ably demonstrated.
