2 pet Rottweilers maul 5-year-old in TN; owners arrested

CHENNAI: Two full-grown Rottweiler dogs - untethered and aggressive - mauled a five-year-old girl in a park in Chennai's Thousand Lights on Sunday. Her mother, who tried to rescue the child, also suffered bites. Locals claimed the dogs had a history of attacks on animals and people.
Suraksha R, the daughter of the park's watchman, Ragu, is in ICU with severe injuries to the scalp, back and arm, and is scheduled to undergo plastic surgery on Thursday.

Her mother Sonia is also receiving treatment for scrapes and bruises.
The dog owner, Pugalendi (63) and his son, Venkateswaran, were walking the Rottweilers in the park when the dogs pounced on the child and started biting her. "They had not kept the dogs on leashes," Ragu told TOI.
"The owners did not try and save the daughter and mother while the dogs were attacking them," said Sonia's grandfather, Shankar. "Only when locals came to their rescue did the dogs move away."

Police registered a case against Pugalendi, his wife Dhanalakshmi and their son Venkateswaran for offences punishable under IPC Sections 289 (animal kept by others causing harm by biting or doing any other act) and 336 (acting/endangering human life). Police arrested the trio and let them off on bail on their own bond.
Greater Chennai Corporation commissioner J Radhakrishnan said the Rottweilers will be taken to an animal shelter and kept there for observation.
Union govt banned breeding, sales and import of 23 dog breeds, including Rottweilers, in March 2024, saying they posed a danger to human life. However, operation of the circular was stayed by Madras HC and quashed by a couple of other HCs.
(With inputs fromA Selvaraj)