Kerala rickshaw driver under arrest after brutally killing street dog he 'disliked'

In what amounts to the administration of justice, an autorickshaw driver who has been accused of deliberately ramming his vehicle over a dog in Kerala's Kozhikode until the animal was dead, has now been arrested. As a result of Republic TV's exclusive revelation of the horrific act of killing, a case has been registered under the Medical College Police Station and the autorickshaw of the perpetrator is confiscated.

Dog murderer under arrest

On October 18, Republic TV accessed exclusive CCTV visuals which revealed the brutal act of a man who ran his autorickshaw over a beige-coloured pet dog. Subsequently, the piece of news reached animal rights activist and Lok Sabha MP of Sultanpur constituency Maneka Gandhi's office via People For Animals (PFA), following which Kerala's district organ of PFA registered a formal complaint before the Police.

The culprit, 54-year-old Santhosh Kumar has been arrested by Kerala Police and charged under Section 429 (mischief by killing or maiming cattle etc.) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 11(1) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act (treating animals cruelly and if a person beats, kicks, over-rides, over-drives any animal to subject it to unnecessary pain).

After a postmortem on the dog was conducted, as well as sources informed that upon taking CCTV visuals into consideration, the police confirmed that the man ran over the pet dog deliberately.

Rickshaw Driver Brutally Runs Over & Kills Much-loved Dog He 'disliked'

CCTV visuals revealed the brutal act of the accused man who ran his autorickshaw over the beige-coloured dog for no reason. The front wheel of the vehicle ran over the canine's belly as the animal desperately tried to wiggle out from under the wheel. The autorickshaw moved further without stopping as the dog's belly got crushed under the wheels while it wailed in agony.

Upon verification of the CCTV footage, it was found that the incident took place on October 13 at around 9.20 am. The neighbours confirmed that they found the dog dead at around 9.45 AM.

The stray, affectionately called Jackie, was everyone's pet in the residential area of Parayenchery, near Baby Memorial Hospital in Kozhikode. "He was everyone's darling. Though a street dog, the residents had given him a collar," said one of the residents. 

The neighbours were unaware of Jackie's cause of death until they scanned through CCTV footage on October 15 and discovered the brutal incident. The number plate on the private autorickshaw appears to be KL 11 H 5095. A check with the number plate revealed that the autorickshaw allegedly belongs to a person identified as Santhosh Kumar. His intention behind killing the innocent animal was still unknown.

"The man expressed no remorse when the colony residents confronted him and said that he just "disliked the dog." Seeing no guilt for his atrocious act, a resident said, "Though such offences are bailable, the culprit should feel the heat of law for this unspeakable crime," they added.

Image: Republic World