Rajasthan High Court takes suo motu note of rising dog bite cases, stray animal menace

The Rajasthan High Court recently took suo motu cognisance of the increasing number of dog bite incidents and the growing threat posed by stray animals on public roads and highways, which have led to multiple fatalities across the State.

The Court took note of news reports, one of which cited data provided by the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying in the Lok Sabha, which revealed alarming figures regarding dog bite cases in India

A Bench of Justices Kuldeep Mathur and Ravi Chirania observed,

"The stray dogs and cows have created menace not only on the city roads but also on State & National Highways, which declares these roads as highly unsafe for the citizens. The incidents due to stray dogs, cows and other such animals have increased immensely...Be that as it may, we find that the above problem needs immediate attention of the responsible Officers and Authorities. Therefore, we take suo-moto cognizance of the news reports..."

According to the news report, data for Rajasthan shows a sharp rise in dog bite cases - 88,029 in 2022; 1,03,533 in 2023; and 1,40,543 in 2024. In January 2025 alone, 15,062 cases were reported.

"The Government of Rajasthan in the year 2018 published a report containing data of ten years from 2009-2010 to 2018. The data specifically contains figures regarding the deaths caused in the State of Rajasthan due to stray animals, which are more than 185 in the year 2018. Though the accidents are increasing day by day due to stray animals but the consolidated data has not been reported by the State Government after the year 2018," the Court noted.

The Court observed that in our society, dogs and cows are commonly kept as pets and are also frequently found as stray animals on the roads, often in large numbers due to their uncontrolled population growth.

"As far as having a pet dog, the owner is responsible for his control and safety while ensuring that it may not cause any harm to the people. The pet lovers also go for a regular vaccination and other precautions for not only safety of the pet but also of the people around them. But not all of them having a dog as pet in their houses are discharging their pious obligation of maintaining them properly and, therefore, they are found abandoned on the road, which causes menace in the society."

It was also noted that the State’s proposed Rajasthan Road Safety Bill, 2022, reportedly addresses this issue. Therefore, the Court sought clarification on whether it has been enacted.

The Court sought replied from various Central and State authorities, and directed the matter to be registered as a public interest litigation (PIL) before the Chief Justice.

The matter will be heard next on August 11.

Senior Advocate Sachin Acharya and Advocates Priyanka Borana and Heli Pathak were appointed as Amicus Curiae to assist the Court, and were directed to submit a detailed report.

Additional Advocate General Rajesh Panwar along with Advocate Ayush Gehlot appeared for the State and municipalities.

Additional Solicitor General Rajdeepak Rastogi along with Advocate BP Bohra appeared for the Central government.

[Read Order]