The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday stroked down the direction issued by the Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department, which bans 23 breeds of dogs citing that they are ferocious and dangerous to human life. The court in its statement said that pet owners should have been consulted by the Centre before deciding on banning the dangerous breeds. However, the court has stated that pet owners have to act responsible.While striking down the circular, Justice M Nagaprasanna stated that the Central government is at liberty to issue a fresh circular after proper consultation and by following proper procedure.An Expert Committee, chaired by the Animal Husbandry Commissioner and comprising members from various stakeholder organizations and experts, identified 23 dog breeds and called them ferocious and dangerous to human life. These are Pitbull Terrier, Tosa Inu, American Staffordshire Terrier, Fila Brasileiro, Dogo Argentino, American Bulldog, Boerboel, Kangal, Central Asian Shepherd Dog (Ovcharka), Caucasian Shepherd Dog (Ovcharka), South Russian Shepherd Dog (Ovcharka), Tornjak, Sarplaninac, Japanese Tosa, Japanese Akita, Mastiffs, Rottweiler, Terriers, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Wolf dogs, Canario Akbash dog, Moscow Guard dog, Cane Corso. The Central government, therefore, urged all States and UTs to ban the above breeds.Then, the petitioners challenged the ruling in the Karnataka High Court. The appeal contended that no one dog breed can be classified as hostile. It went on to say that any isolated attack by the breed can only be linked to the unsocialized and untrained dogs.The move from the Karnataka high court has come after April 8, when it reserved the order on a petition filed challenging the circular issued by the Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department.
