These unkempt animals in a Bopodi house are making neighbours sick

By Vishakha Virkhare

Cops have registered a case that sees it as a malignant act likely to spread infection and disease, are asking PMC to relocate the animals

In a city known for its love of animals and strays, it is not unusual to find people who have taken to sheltering them. However, the Bharadiyas of Elphinston Road, Bopodi, have become a nuisance and health hazard for their neighbours due to the unhygienic manner in which they are rearing 30 cats and eight stray dogs in their home. After intervention by animal activists and even the health department of Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) did not help, residents in the vicinity have now sought the help of police and an honorary warden of the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) to resolve the situation.

On August 5, Seema Agarwal (42), who lives on the same road, near the Bopodi railway crossing, lodged a complaint at the Khadki police station against Harish Bharadiya and his mother, Indira. Other family members in the house include his sister Jyoti and father Arvind.

A homemaker, Agarwal told Mirror, “On July 18, my son Gaurav was playing in the neighbourhood, when one of the Bharadiya dogs bit his leg.

We had a verbal spat but the family was unrelenting about allowing the dogs to roam unleashed, leaving us no option but to approach the cops.”

Her husband Mukesh, a businessman, shared her concern. “We have been residing in this locality for many years now. But we have been facing this problem with the Bharadiyas for the past one year. We cannot sleep at night due to the barking. The family beat them up when the dogs squabble among themselves. We hardly see any of the family members and they hardly interact with other residents here. There is a small room in their front yard and another at the backyard. There is also an open space in the middle. The entire place is so unkempt and the stink is such that I’ve stopped eating at home,” he said.


Long before the Agarwal complaint, another neighbour, Vitthal Vethekar, acting on behalf of the residents of the area, had approached PMC’s health department on June 19, 2017. The civic body sent notices to the family for two consecutive months, without avail. Vethekar had pointed out that in his complaint that the family did not have the license to house the animals and was doing so illegally.

But clearly, the Bharadiyas were not so ready to give up on their animal obsession. “Whenever any department official came calling, the family pushes the animals through a narrow passage into the jungle of the adjoining company plot. I’ve also spotted a cage with Persian cats confined in it. A few months ago, a cat died and was left covered by a plastic sheet in the courtyard for a whole night. The next morning, when the stench got too much, I persuaded Harish to get rid of the carcass,” recounted Vethekar’s son Rohit.

His sister added, “My baby is a few months old but cannot sleep due to the barking. We have to shut the windows and door tight to keep out the sound and smell. In fact, Harish’s elder brother exited the house six months ago unable to take the family’s handling of the animals. Before leaving he told us to lodge a complaint against the family. We informed the founder of Society for Animal Safety (SAS), Nitesh Khare, who is also a warden for AWBI.”


Rohit’s contention is echoed by PMC health inspector, Sheela Waskar. “I visited the Bharadiya home thrice since receiving the complaint last year, but the family did not allow me in. Even so, I could not take the smell that hit me when they opened the door to their house. Five months ago, I accompanied the residents to Khadki police station to lodge a case, but cops questioned under what section they could register the case. As a civic body, we can only send notices and check if the dogs are sterilised and vaccinated. Now, I have transferred the matter to our stray dog cell,” she told Mirror.

Khare agreed that it has been tricky dealing with the case. “We are actually stuck on how to proceed in the matter. Since I was alerted six months ago, I’ve visited the house and also met with the residents. I would like to relocate the animals. The cops have the right to seize the animals and take them into custody. Next week, we hope to meet the commissioner and take the guidance of the high office in steering the process,” he said.

For now, an offence has been registered under sections 270, 289, 504, 506 and 34 of Indian Penal Code (IPC), for a malignant act likely to spread infection or disease dangerous to life, negligent conduct with respect to animals, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach in peace, criminal intimidation and common intent, against Harish and his mother. They have also been booked under sections 106 (letting animals loose in a public space) and 117 of the Bombay Police Act and under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. “We have sent the letter to PMC to relocate the animals at the earliest. I have been to the house but was not allowed in. We are likely to arrest Harish in the process of investigation,” informed Madan Kamble, sub-inspector at Khadki police station.

Meanwhile, residents are finding it difficult to cling to their regular life. “My business (of making idli-dosa batter) has suffered due to some of my workers quitting, unable to take the smell despite donning masks. I myself am suffering from throat infection for a month now, and keep falling sick,” complained another neighbour of the Bharadiyas, Bhuvaneshwari Thever.

Efforts to reach the Bharadiyas proved futile.