A two year old girl dies after being attacked by street dogs

They live in a shanty in Tughlak Lane...

A two-year-old girl was allegedly mauled to death by street dogs in Tughlak Lane in Lutyens’ Delhi on Saturday evening, police said on Sunday.

A senior officer said the incident was reported at around 7 pm on Saturday. “When police reached the spot, they were informed that the girl was taken to a nearby hospital. The family members at the hospital informed the police that she had been declared dead on arrival,” the officer said.

Tek Chand, 42, the minor’s uncle said the girl had stepped out of her home to play around 6.30pm.

“She was only a few meters outside the house when five dogs attacked her. They bit her and dragged her for about 100 meters towards the boundary wall of the Dhobi Ghat,” Chand said.

A man passing by on a bicycle raised an alarm after which locals and the girl’s family, who were inside the house, rushed out to rescue her.

Chand and other residents of the neighborhood alleged that the dogs were being sheltered “by a person who lived in a nearby bungalow”.

“About a month ago, the dogs had also attacked another child in the locality,” Chand said.

Deputy Commissioner of police (New Delhi), Devesh Mahla, said a case under Section 304A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) had been registered. “We have received a complaint from the parents. Further investigation is underway,” he said.

Investigators also said that they were looking into the allegations levelled by the residents of the Tughlak Lane slums.

“There is no law on feeding a dog and places earmarked for it. Therefore, we are seeking legal opinion on the matter,” the officer said

The girl’s post-mortem examination was conducted at Safdarjung Hospital, after which the body was handed over to the family.

Activist Sonya Ghosh said, “If we look at veterinary hospitals under the animal husbandry department, there are 77 such hospitals in Delhi. Most of them are failing to perform their designated role. Even if 10 sterilizations were done each day by these centres, the stray dog population would come down drastically. The chief minister needs to ask the animal husbandry department to do its role properly,” she said.