Badaun(Uttar Pradesh): In a bizarre incident, the Uttar Pradesh Police filed a 30-page charge sheet against a potter who was accused of killing a rat by tying a brick to its tail and drowning it in a drain on Tueasday. The incident allegedly took place on November 24, 2022, and Vikendra Kumar, an animal rights activist, filed a case against the accused.
Kumar, a resident of Kalyan Nagar in Badaun, stated that he saw Manoj Kumar tie a brick to a rat's tail and drown it in a drain while passing through the Panavadiya locality. “"On November 24, 2022, I was passing through the Panavadiya locality. During this, I saw one Manoj Kumar tie a brick to the tail of a rat and drowned it in a drain. He did not agree even after being interrupted and started arguing. When I pulled out the rat from the drain, it died. Later I filed a complaint against the accused at the police station," Kumar said.
Manoj Kumar was granted bail by a court after being arrested. According to the police, the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) conducted an autopsy on the rat and found that it had died of "dry drowning". Based on the autopsy report, video evidence, and statements from locals, the investigating officer filed a chargesheet against Kumar, which will be submitted to the court after the circle officer's verification.
However, the post-mortem reports reveal that the rat's cause of death was not drowning, as alleged by the complainant. Dr. KP Singh, the Joint Director of IVRI, stated that the rat died of suffocation and that no drain water was found in its system. The reports suggest that the creature was already ill and did not die due to the alleged torture inflicted by the accused.
"In the post-mortem report, no water was found in the lungs of the rat. In fact, we discovered that the liver and lungs of the creature were already damaged, implying that he was ill," Dr. Singh had said. The report also suggested the possibility of death due to necrosis in the lungs, which is basically the tearing of tissues due to high pressure.
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"Furthermore, during the histopathology and microscopy examination, we did not find any trace of water or dirt in any of the body tubes of the rat. The inclined part of the lung was torn. This is probably because while dying, the animal took deep and heavy breaths due to which the rapture burst. Another lethal infection was found in the liver of the rat," he added.
Vikendra Sharma, an animal welfare activist and Honorary Animal Welfare Officer of the Indian Animal Welfare Board, brought the case to the police's attention, accusing his neighbour of torturing and killing a rat by tying a stone to its tail and drowning it in a drain. The Badaun police registered an FIR under section 429 (killing or maiming an animal) against the accused, Manoj Kumar.
"On November 25, the rat's body was brought to IVRI. Dr Ashok Kumar and Dr Pawan Kumar conducted the post-mortem of the body. It can be concluded from reports of the post-mortem that the rat died of asphyxiation and not because of drowning," Dr Singh said. The report's findings will be taken into account for further investigation.
