Two sisters were allegedly beaten and molested by residents of the housing society in which they live, and the reason was that they rescued and fed puppies in the society premises, says a Mid-Day report.
On Tuesday, the two sisters – Shilpa (28) and Kiran Ahuja (29) – were gheraoed by around 20 people of the Dindoshi’s Sanjay Gandhi Nagar SRA, who brutally attacked them.
“They tore our clothes and beat us. Around 20 people were in a circle around us, thrashing us. We had to run for our lives,” Kiran was quoted by Mid-Day as saying.
Shilpa, a lawyer, and Kiran, a physiotherapist, are both registered with the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), and they regularly feed stray dogs in the neighbourhood.
The sisters alleged that the residents started threatening them for feeding stray dogs inside the society premises, and that things got worse after a female gave birth to a litter of pups.
When Kiran and Shilpa went home to Raipur for Diwali, the society members allegedly dumped the puppies away from the building.
On October 24, when the sisters returned, one of the residents Rustom Patel and his two sons came to their flat and threatened to evict them if they continued feeding the dogs.
It was then that the sisters filed a police complaint against the residents.
On Tuesday evening, Kiran said she saw Patel beating up the female dog and tried to stop him. “He called his family and other residents, who began abusing and slapping me,” she said.
She called her sister for help, but the residents allegedly assaulted her too. The sisters went to the police around midnight.
“An FIR was filed against Rustom Patel, his wife Rabia Patel, his son Riyaz and a fourth accused,” said senior police inspector Uday Rajeshirke.
The police have arrested the three for molestation, assault and rioting.
