Panchayat faces flak for ‘killing dogs’

TIRUCHY: A video of the brutal killing of stray dogs in a particular panchayat in Thanjavur that went viral in the region on Tuesday has sent shock waves among residents, particularly animal lovers.

However, the panchayat president, Vettriselvi, refused the claim and said that the video was fake and a few miscreants had purposefully circulated it to disturb public peace and tarnish the image of the civic body.

Sources said over 5,000 residents are residing in Thirumettraligai, Puthupadayur, Gopinathaperumalkoil and Nandanmedu in Patteeswaram panchayat near Kumbakonam in Thanjavur district and there were widespread complaints to the panchayat president about the dog menace in the region.

Since there was no proper response, residents reportedly sent a petition to the CM’s special cell.

Subsequently, from April 9, the panchayat staff had reportedly started to capture the stray dogs with specific equipment in a crude manner.

A few animal lovers, who were present at the spot where the dogs were caught, had recorded their actions on their mobiles and started sharing them on social media.

The people, who uploaded the videos, claimed that the panchayat staff had reportedly killed around 40 stray dogs and further claimed that the carcasses were buried on the banks of Thirumalairajan River.

On Monday night, a few residents gathered at the spot and staged a protest.

On information, Vettriselvi rushed to the spot and tried to pacify the agitators.

But the protestors insisted the panchayat president suspend the ‘killing of dogs’ or they would lodge a complaint with the Collector.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the panchayat president told the reporters that the video circulating on social media was an exaggerated one.

“Since there were complaints about the stray dog menace in the panchayat,we approached the block development officials to catch the dogs and sterilize them. But the officials demanded Rs 700 per animal. As the charge was heavy, we instructed the staff to capture and release the dogs on the riverbank. There was no killing of dogs. In order to create a sensation, miscreants had circulated the video and we will initiate legal action against them,” said Vettriselvi.