Mumbai Crime: Kitten savagely killed by office peon at Santacruz

The perpetrator Manoj Angane

Animal brutality is a game that citizens of this city don't appear to tire of. This time, a three-month old kitten was brutally killed by being repeatedly smashed into a wall; it ultimately bled to death. While the incident occurred almost a month ago on May 6, and FIR was registered only on May 26 after PETA stepped in.

One of the litter
The brutality came to light when Yuvraj Bhavsar (30), who has an office on the ground floor of MR Society in Santacruz (west), stepped out for lunch. "I take care of the two-three cats in the compound," he said. "I feed them regularly, and they practically live out of my office. One of the cats had recently given birth to a litter of three kittens; I saw them all playing outside the office when I left."

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However, when he returned, he saw that found one of the new kittens lying dead.

"There was blood oozing from its face and mouth," he recalls. He then immediately brought it to the notice of the office next door, who had a CCTV installed, and could see what happened. "It was the peon, later identified as Manoj Angane, from their own office, lifting the cat from its tail and smashing it against the wall. He even hit the kitten's face with a small stick before calmly walking away."

Delay in FIR
However, it wasn't till three weeks later that an FIR was registered. Explaining the delay, Yuvraj said, "I wanted the employer to fire the peon but he kept haggling and didn't do anything about it. When he finally didn't do it, I lodged the FIR with the help of PETA."

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Now, PETA has written to city police commissioner, demanding that apart from being punished, the perpetrator also 'undergo psychiatric evaluation and counselling'. PETA has pointed out that the crime is a punishable offence under Section 429 of The Indian Penal Code as well as sections 11(1)(a) and (l) of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, and Section 119 of the Maharashtra Police Act, 1951.

"People who commit or have committed acts of animal cruelty are highly susceptible to further hurt more animals and human beings, in the future," said PETA spokesperson Meet Ashar. "This act is one where the animal has not done anything to harm the human, so it hasn't been killed in self-defense."

Police speaks
"After the FIR was registered, we served the accused with a legal notice, which he has accepted. Further inquiry into the incident is still underway," said PSI Sudhir Jadhav, Santacruz police station.

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Past instances
Several recent cases of cruelty to animals have indicated the need for harsher penalties, including those in which a Bengaluru woman killed eight puppies, Chennai medical students threw a puppy from a roof, and Vellore medical students killed a monkey.