Actor and animal welfare advocate John Abraham has written to Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai, urging a review of a recent Supreme Court directive ordering the removal of all community dogs from Delhi’s
public spaces to shelters or distant locations. Abraham appealed for the continuation of the Animal Birth Control (ABC) programme instead.
In his letter, Abraham argued that these animals are not “strays” but “community dogs—respected and loved by many, and very much Delhiites in their own right,” having coexisted with humans for generations. He pointed out that the ABC Dog Rules, 2023, in line with WHO recommendations, mandate sterilisation, vaccination, and return of dogs to their home areas, rather than displacement.
Highlighting successful examples from Jaipur, which has sterilised over 70% of its dogs, and Lucknow, with 84%, Abraham stressed that Delhi could replicate these results. He warned that removing an estimated 10 lakh community dogs would cause suffering and create a “vacuum effect,” allowing unsterilised and unvaccinated dogs to move in, increasing public health risks.
“The ABC approach safeguards public health while honouring our constitutional values of compassion and coexistence,” Abraham wrote, adding that removal would undermine both law and science-based solutions.
Abraham’s appeal follows a recent order by a Supreme Court bench comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan, which directed the removal of dogs from the capital’s public spaces—a decision animal rights groups have also opposed.
