Bhumi Pednekar has expressed her concerns over the recent Supreme Court ruling which ordered the government authorities to remove stray dogs from the streets of Delhi-NCR. Bhumi shared a heartwarming story of her dog Bruno and called for empathy, peace and justice.
Taking to Instagram, Bhumi shared a photo with Bruno and wrote, “My Bruno baba came into our lives when he was just 4 months old. When the brilliant team at Yoda Mumbai found him, he was battered & badly hurt — jaw dislocated, tail burnt — yet his spirit was that of a warrior. All of this was done by little children who found joy in torturing an innocent soul. Not their fault — it’s ours, for failing to instil empathy, co-existence and kindness with us. Bruno is a wise soul. He is intelligent, kind, playful, nurturing, protective yet gentle.”
The actor then mentioned the Supreme Court ruling and said, “The Hon. Supreme Court ruling that allows the picking up of 3,00,000 dogs in Delhi to be put into shelters, I can’t help but think of Bruno… and all the Indies who have known nothing but the streets they call home. For decades, street dog feeders have been their champions — feeding them, caring for their wounds, getting them sterilised and vaccinated out of their own pockets. Instead of criminalising their existence or punishing those who care, I hope we create stronger reforms and systems- Mass sterilisation drives. Regular vaccination programs. Community-led feeding and monitoring.”
She said that dogs are part of the cultural heritage of the country. “The Indian Pariah dog has walked alongside us for over 4,500 years. They are part of our cultural and spiritual heritage — mentioned in the Rig Veda, the Mahabharata, and the Upanishads. In our ancient scriptures, they stood for loyalty, dharma, spiritual companionship, and protection. They still stand for the same today,” she wrote.
She added, “Removing them en masse, stripping them of the only life they know, will not solve the root issues — it will only create more cruelty and displacement. May there be empathy. May there be peace. May justice prevail.”
Earlier, Varun Dhawan, John Abraham, Janhvi Kapoor and Vir Das, among others spoke about the SC order and voiced their concerns.
On Monday, the Supreme Court directed all the strays to be removed and put in shelters by the Delhi government and civic bodies of Gurugram, Noida and Ghaziabad.
A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan noted that there was an "extremely grim" situation due to stray dog bites resulting in rabies, particularly among children.
The court has directed Delhi authorities to start with creating shelters for around 5,000 canines within six to eight weeks.
