AHMEDABAD: A city sessions court on Friday confirmed the conviction and one-year jail sentence of a man whose doberman attacked his neighbours in 2014, injuring a man and three children. It also ordered the legal service authority to pay compensation to the victims of the attack.
Bhadresh Pandya, 54, a resident of Ashapuri Society in Ghodasar, owned a doberman named Shakti.
The dog attacked four people: Avinash Patel, his son Jay, nephew Takshil and another child named Vyom.
Patel lodged an FIR against Pandya for not keeping his dog on a leash, which resulted in the attack. After biting the children, the dog had attacked Patel, who fell and broke his hand.
Pandya was tried by a metropolitan court, which held him guilty in Jan 2020 and sentenced him to one year jail under Section 338 (causing grievous hurt and endangering human life with rash and negligent behaviour) and three months imprisonment under IPC Sections 289 (negligent conduct with regard to animal) and Section 337.
Court observed that dog posed threat to elderly people, kids
Pandya was also fined Rs 1,500. He ap p ealed ag ainst his conviction before the city sessions court. As the court had completed hearing but did not deliver its verdict, Patel approached the high court. The HC stipulated a period within which the sessions court had to deliver the verdict.
On Friday, additional sessions judge A J Kanani upheld the conviction and sentencing.
The judge said he ag reed with the complainant’s argument that the dog had caused panic in the society since 2012-13, leaving residents, elderly people, children and pregnant women in fear of an aggressive dog such as doberman.
The judge also ruled that the trial court ought to have granted compensation to the victims. Pandya has been ordered to surrender before the metropolitan court within 30 days.
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