Activists fume over burnt stray dog carcass, cops yet to locate remains

Jabalpur: The recovery of charred remains of a stray dog near Jabalpur’s Yadgar Chowk raised the hackles of local animal lovers, who alleged it was likely set on fire before the police could even carry out a medico-legal investigation.The burnt carcass was found lying in an open garbage pile in the Cantonment police station area on Friday.Local animal activists raised suspicions that drunkards or miscreants may have set the dog on fire, as they demanded the filing of an FIR for cruelty and slaughtering a stray for fun.It was alleged that before the police could conduct a preliminary inquiry, the carcass had already been removed from the spot by Cantonment Board workers, leaving them chasing leads on its whereabouts to determine the cause of death.“We have written to the Cantonment Board seeking details of the carcass. Once we locate and take custody of the remains, a panchnama (recording of evidence and findings) and post-mortem will be conducted. Further action will depend on the findings of the autopsy report,” Cantonment police station in-charge, Pushpendra Patel, said.Meanwhile, the recovery of the burnt remains triggered protests outside the police station, as animal lovers and local residents gathered in numbers, demanding strict action against those responsible.They said if their suspicion that the dog was burnt alive is found to be true, the act would amount to extreme cruelty and a serious criminal offence.The demonstration briefly turned heated, as the activists got into a war of words with police officers before they were assured that the matter was being investigated.Police said an FIR would be registered if the autopsy confirms that the dog died after being set on fire.