‘What Is Her Body Language’: After Sharmila Tagore, Supreme Court Slams Maneka Gandhi Over Criticism Of Its Orders On Stray Dogs

Stray Dogs: The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to initiate contempt proceedings against BJP leader and former Union minister Maneka Gandhi over her public criticism of the court’s orders related to the management of stray dogs, but delivered sharp observations on her remarks.

A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N.V. Anjaria said Gandhi had made “all kinds of comments” and had effectively committed contempt of court, according to the sources. However, the judges said they were refraining from initiating proceedings as an act of judicial magnanimity.

Sharp Observations From The Bench

During the hearing, Justice Sandeep Mehta questioned what concrete steps Gandhi had taken during her tenure as a Union minister to address the stray dog issue, including whether she had helped secure any budgetary allocation for its resolution.

The bench also defended its earlier remarks on holding dog feeders accountable in dog-bite cases, clarifying that the comments were made seriously and not sarcastically.

On January 13, the Supreme Court had said it would consider directing states to pay “heavy compensation” in dog-bite cases and explore fixing accountability on feeders, remarks that drew criticism from some quarters.

‘Have You Seen Her Body Language?’

Questioning senior advocate Raju Ramachandran, who appeared for Gandhi, the bench reportedly said the former minister had made sweeping remarks against various institutions without restraint.

“You ask the court to be circumspect, but have you asked your client what kind of remarks she has made?” the bench said, adding, “Have you seen her body language?”

When Ramachandran responded that he had even represented terrorist Ajmal Kasab and argued that budgetary decisions were a matter of policy, Justice Vikram Nath reportedly remarked that Kasab “did not commit contempt of court”, while Gandhi had.

Maneka Gandhi has not issued a response to the court’s observations so far.

Court Flags Implementation Gaps

The Supreme Court also expressed concern over the non-implementation of stray animal management norms for nearly five years, pointing to systemic failures at the civic level.

Gandhi, a long-time animal rights advocate, has consistently opposed coercive measures against stray dogs. In earlier statements, she argued that the core issue lies in the collapse of municipal systems, ineffective sterilisation programmes, and poor waste management.

“The problem was never the dogs, but the failure of civic authorities,” she has said, adding that punishing animals without addressing the root causes amounts to ignoring institutional shortcomings.

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