DSCC relocating stray dogs again?
Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) appears to be reverting on its promise to not relocate stray dogs from the city without consulting concerned stakeholders.
A DSCC move to clear the streets of stray dogs by relocating them to a landfill was met with strong protests last year, prompting animal rights groups to file a writ petition with the High Court (HC) challenging its legality.
The petition was eventually dropped after Attorney General AM Amin Uddin assured the HC bench of Justice Md Ashfaqul Islam and Justice Mohammad Ali on November 23 last year on behalf of the DSCC mayor that no dog relocation would take place without consulting stakeholders, including the petitioners.
DSCC Mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh also subsequently sat in discussions with the petitioners and other stakeholders on sustainable management of stray dog population in the city.
However, a recent video captured by phone and shared on social media shows men from a van of DSCC trapping a dog in a net, near Bongobazar intersection of the capital. When the man recording the video asks why the dogs are captured, he is told the dog would be released outside the city. The man then asks if they are city corporation staff, which they admit.
The man is Musa Un-Nabi Saikat, a cultural activist residing in Old Dhaka. Talking to this newspaper yesterday, Saikat said the incident happened on February 14 morning. "The men told me they were doing it on the mayor's orders, so I had nothing to say. But seeing it broke my heart. I cried that day," said Saikat.
Contacted about it, DSCC public relations officer (PRO) and spokesperson Md Abu Nasher asked for some time to enquire about it, before responding. About an hour later, he said, "Yes, what you saw in the video is true. DSCC is launching a neutering programme for male stray dogs, and as part of 'know-how', two dogs were captured, neutered and returned to their original places... There has been no violation of the attorney general's promise to the court."
He further said DSCC only had capacity to neuter male dogs, but not female dogs yet. Asked which office of DSCC was handling the project, he said it was the health department.
Contacted about the neutering programme around 5pm yesterday, DSCC chief health officer Brig Gen Dr Md Sharif Ahmed said, "Please contact me tomorrow during office hours, and I can connect you to the veterinary officer who is handling it."
When veterinary officer Dr SM Shafiqul Islam was contacted about the details of the neutering project shortly after, he said, "Please talk to the PRO. I don't know details about it. It is still in planning stage. I will not say anything on this."
When asked if they neutered any dogs recently, he said they did so in the past when they had a programme, but nothing recently. Pressed further, he said, "I cannot speak about this. There are restrictions to talk about it."
Contacted again about the veterinary officer's denial of neutering any dogs, the DSCC spokesperson said, "I told you what I found out officially. I even spoke to him. I don't know why he said that."
Asked, Attorney General AM Amin Uddin told The Daily Star that he made the promise to the HC upon assurance from DSCC. "They [DSCC] had promised me [to not relocate dogs]. I don't know what has happened now or why they did it."
After the November 23 hearing, petitioner's lawyer Barrister Saqeb Mahbub had said that the petition could be moved again before the HC if DSCC did not keep their commitment.
Rakibul Haq Emil, founder of People for Animal Welfare Foundation and one of the petitioners, said, "We were assured by the attorney general, the highest law officer of the state. The mayor has also hinted in a recent interview with Prothom Alo that he wants to move towards a scientific solution to the issue. And there should be no hindrance as the department of livestock, health ministry and us activists are all ready to cooperate."
"However, if dogs are indeed being relocated, we must question if the mayor is aware of this. It is a question of the mayor and attorney general's reputation. And if the situation is like last year again, then as citizens, our last resort is the court," Emil told The Daily Star.
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