Following the Supreme Court’s recent order to remove stray dogs from residential areas in Delhi-NCR, historical parallels have emerged from the tenure of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel as municipal president of the Ahmedabad municipality in the 1920s.
According to “Patel: A Life” by Rajmohan Gandhi, Patel oversaw a civic campaign targeting rats, stray dogs, and decrepit cattle during his term. The measures drew objections from certain Jain groups, who opposed the capture of stray dogs, and from sections of the Hindu community, who wanted him to prevent Muslims from slaughtering old cattle.
Patel reportedly told the Jains that they could “show the dogs pity by keeping them in their homes” if they opposed municipal action. To Hindus objecting to cattle slaughter, his retort was that it was Hindus themselves who sold old cattle to Muslim butchers.
When Sardar Patel was the mayor of Amdavad, he did a drive against rats and stray dogs. pic.twitter.com/KyGLXrwkLM
— Harshil (હર્ષિલ) (@MehHarshil) August 12, 2025
The Supreme Court, in its 11 August 2025 ruling, ordered the relocation of stray dogs away from residential localities in Delhi-NCR, warning that any obstruction to the exercise would invite strict action. The order followed a spate of dog bite incidents in the capital region.
Dog lovers have been going on an overdrive comparing dogs to rapists and voicing their views against the Supreme Court order.
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