In a case of severe animal cruelty, at least 500 stray dogs have been poisoned and killed in the past week in Telangana. According to police, approximately 200 dogs were killed in the Kamareddy district of Telangana. The Kamareddy Police have identified a man allegedly responsible for poisoning at least 200 street dogs across three villages in the district over the past two days, leading to their deaths. The suspect has been traced to Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday (January 14, 2026) and a police team consisting of an Inspector and a Sub-Inspector were dispatched to take him into custody.
Local sources indicate that the village sarpanch (head) and several other elected representatives played a key role in killing the stray dogs in effort to fulfil election promises. A case has been filed against several people, including seven village heads, in connection with this incident.
This killing spree comes after the Supreme Court warned the state governments of imposing hefty fines for failing to control the stray dog population. Earlier, 300 stray dogs were poisoned and killed in the Shyampet and Arepalli villages of the Hanamkonda district. Police said that after killing the dogs, their bodies were taken to a place away from the village and buried.
A case was filed against nine people in this connection. Among them, two village women sarpanches and their husbands were also allegedly involved. They were booked along with gram panchayat secretaries and hired individuals, under Section 325 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, which pertains to mischief by killing, poisoning, maiming or rendering useless any animal, and Section 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 on January 9, 2026.
Stray dog killings linked to panchayat election promise
According to local residents, the village panchayat elections were held in December last year. At that time, the candidates promised the villagers that they would take appropriate measures to reduce the menace of stray dogs and monkeys. After winning the elections, they fulfilled that promise by killing the dogs. They alleged that hundreds of dogs were killed with poisonous injections.
Police said that veterinarians are exhuming the bodies of the dogs and conducting post-mortem examinations.
The police said that the exact cause of death and how the dogs were killed will be clear after receiving the post-mortem report. A senior police officer told a news agency that it is initially believed that the dogs were poisoned. However, viscera samples have been sent for forensic testing to determine the exact cause of death and the type of poison used.
Dogs in Hanamkonda were administered poisonous injections
Following the dog killings in Kamareddy, animal lover Adulapuram Goutham has filed a complaint at the Machareddy police station on Monday. The matter of stray dog killings came to light after his complaint. Goutham alleged that this massacre took place in at least five villages of the Kamareddy district over the past two to three days. Allegations have also surfaced that contract killers were hired to kill the dogs. Goutham stated that similar dog killings have occurred in Palwancha, Faridpet, and Wadi villages, in addition to Kamareddy.
Telangana police have initiated legal action against 15 people, including seven village heads, across Hanamkonda and Kamareddy districts. The incident, in which at least 500 stray dogs were poisoned and killed in the first week of the new year, is one of the largest animal culling operations in the state’s history.
The dogs in the Hanamkonda case were allegedly administered poisonous injections, said police. “The injections filled with poisonous drug were fixed to long sticks, allowing the accused to approach the dogs and inject them at close range. The animals died within a minute of being injected,” a senior official said.
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