Teenagers burn puppies and circulate horrific video on WhatsApp

Warning: This post contains a graphic and upsetting video.

In a horrifying incident of animal cruelty, police in the southern city of Hyderabad have arrested eight teenagers for burning a litter of three puppies alive. The boys, who were all under the age of 18 years, recorded a video of the incident, which was then circulated on WhatsApp and social media.

The first video shows the boys setting the three puppies on fire, after tying them together and covering them with hay, jute bags and dry sticks in a graveyard. While the puppies were trying to escape, the teenagers were seen pushing them back into the fire.

After spotting the video, animal rights activists filed a police complaint. “Unfortunately, there is no harsh punishment for such gruesome killings of animals. They would get away with some fine,” one of the complainants Shreya Paropkari of Humane Society International said.

Hyderabad Police also received a second video of a man shooting two dogs with a rifle. While the first dog escaped, the second was shot. The culprit in the second video has not been identified yet.

The attacks took place two weeks after two medical students in the southern city of Chennai were arrested for throwing a dog from a building's roof. The two had filmed the incident. While the dog was injured by the fall, the two students were caught and released on bail soon after.

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The Chennai incident also highlighted the need of a stronger law against animal cruelty. Instead of imprisonment, anyone accused under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act can be let off with minor fines of as little as Rs 10 (15 cents) and Rs 50 (75 cents).

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