American Bully dog attacks 7-year-old in Delhi, case registered

New Delhi: A seven-year-old girl was critically injured after being allegedly attacked by a neighbour's dog in the national capital's Rohini area, police said.

The incident took place on January 9 at nearly 5 pm when the American Bully dog, belonging to one of the neighbours, attacked the girl who was playing outside her house. The girl's father said she received multiple injuries to her right shoulder and some other areas.

The Delhi Police have registered a case on the basis of the father's complaint on January 12 under sections 289 (negligent conduct in relation to animals) and 337 (rash or negligent act causing injury to any person endangering human life or the personal safety of others).

Reports of attacks by the American Bully dog breed has led to fatalities not only in India but in other countries too.

In September last year, United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak vowed to ban the American XL bully dog breed. His remark came after a dog attack suspected to be by the same breed led to a fatality. In a video message, the UK PM said that the American XL bully dog was a danger to the communities, especially to children.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Sunak said, "It's clear the American XL Bully dog is a danger to our communities. I've ordered urgent work to define and ban this breed so we can end these violent attacks and keep people safe".

Meanwhile, in a significant ruling, the Punjab and Haryana High Court in November last year directed that the state government shall be primarily responsible for paying compensation to victims of dog bites, adding that the minimum financial assistance would be Rs 10,000 per tooth mark.

"When the flesh is removed from the skin, the compensation will be at least Rs 20,000 per 0.2 cm wound," the court ruled. The ruling came during a hearing on a batch of petitions pertaining to dog bite incidents.

A woman was injured after she being allegedly attacted by a pitbull in Delhi's Swaroop Nagar area last November.

The incident happened on Friday when an argument broke out between the victim and her neighbours after she objected to their dog defecating in front of her residence.

In May last year a 9-year-old girl child playing outside the house was attacked by a pit bull dog in UP's Meerut.

As per the eyewitnesses, the child was riding a bicycle outside her house when she was attacked. She was rescued from dog's grip only after the dog owner thrashed him with a cane. Earlier too, a nine-year-old boy was also left severely injured after a stray pit bull attacked him in Narheda village in Meerut.

Meanwhile, in a significant ruling, the Punjab and Haryana High Court in November last year directed that the state government shall be primarily responsible for paying compensation to victims of dog bites, adding that the minimum financial assistance would be Rs 10,000 per tooth mark.

"When the flesh is removed from the skin, the compensation will be at least Rs 20,000 per 0.2 cm wound," the court ruled. The ruling came during a hearing on a batch of petitions pertaining to dog bite incidents.

Under Section 399 of the Delhi Municipal Act 1957, it is mandatory to register all pet dogs with the municipal corporation. The section also gives power to the MCD to detain a dog found in a public place if a pet dog is not registered with the civic body.

There is also a provision for fining the pet owner and even prosecution.

In order to facilitate pet owners, the MCD is providing a Convenient and Hassle-free online facility for dog registration. Through the online system, an applicant can register for a dog license by providing the relevant details in the application form available on the MCD portal mcdonline.nic.in.

The documents that needed to be submitted are an anti-rabies vaccination certificate, a photograph of the animal, residence proof and identity proof of the owner. (ANI)