04/01/2026
My post with the Indian Express article
Four months.
Non-stop protests.
Peaceful demonstrations.
Science. Law. Ground reality.
And yet, it feels like we are an unwanted breed of people.
When a street dog is hungry, sick, beaten, living in filth —
the country looks away.
When a poor labourer’s family struggles daily with hunger, unsafe housing, no childcare —
the country looks away.
But when tragedy strikes — when a bite, an attack, a death happens —
suddenly everyone wakes up.
Suddenly it’s outrage.
Suddenly it’s “remove all dogs”.
Suddenly it’s collective memory loss.
No one asks:
Why was ABC not implemented?
Why were dogs left unsterilised?
Why was governance absent?
Why did poverty, neglect, and corruption create the conditions for tragedy?
Instead, blame is dumped on the weakest — animals and the people who tried to protect them.
For decades, thousands of ordinary citizens have filled the gap left by the State —
feeding, sterilising, vaccinating, rescuing — often with their own money, their own time, their own lives.
Many have lost jobs.
Many have lost friendships.
Many live isolated, hated, mocked.
Not because they wanted attention —
but because they couldn’t look away.
And yes — we must also speak the uncomfortable truth:
we are not united enough.
Egos. Infighting. Silence. Distrust.
While the system watches us fracture, it becomes easier to ignore us.
Movements don’t fail only because of power above.
They also fail because of division within.
This is not about dogs vs humans.
This is about failed governance vs shared responsibility.
If hills can be saved in days,
if forests can be protected overnight,
then why is compassion for animals treated as expendable?
Justice should not depend on which life goes viral.
If we want change, we must stop fighting each other
and start confronting the real enemy:
apathy, corruption, and selective outrage.
