Hyderabad: Animal rights groups are demanding the inclusion of stringent provisions in the Prevention of Cruelty Against Animals Act and the Wildlife Act. Now, despite having specific Acts for offences, the police books offenders either under Sections 428 and 429 or under the AP Prohibition of Cow Slaughter and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. The changes will stop people from being cruel to animals, feel activists.
A study by the Massachusetts Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Northeastern University revealed that people who have abused animals are four times more likely to have a record of violent crime and the American Psychiatric Association identifies cruelty to animals as a diagnostic criterion for conduct disorders. The US Federal Bureau of Investigation uses reports of crimes against animals to analyse the threat potential of suspected criminals.
“It is imperative that penalties for cruelty to animals are strong enough to act as true deterrents and enforced to ensure the safety of both human and animals. The government, police and the public should take cases of cruelty to animals extremely seriously. Animal abusers are generally cowards who enjoy the feeling of power that they get when they victimise defenseless living beings, and they must be stopped before they expand to others,” said Poorva Joshipura, CEO, PETA India.
Vasanthi from People For Animals (PFA) said, “Our laws must be equipped with more stringent provisions to ensure that people are afraid of harming animals. Right from the national bird to a small puppy, we come across many such cases of killing and it is just sad.”