Animal rights activists on Wednesday claimed that nearly 100 stray dogs were allegedly killed in Telangana’s Nagarkurnool district, pushing the reported toll of canine deaths across the state to around 1,200 since December 2025.
Police confirmed that an FIR has been registered in connection with the latest incident at Thimmaipally village, naming three accused, including the son of a village panchayat president. The case was filed following a complaint by animal welfare activist M Preethi, who alleged that stray dogs were killed about 10 days ago by administering poisonous injections. According to the complaint, dog killers were allegedly hired for ₹18,000 and the carcasses were buried around two kilometres away from the village.
Preethi, who works as an Animal Cruelty Prevention Assistant with the Stray Animal Foundation of India, accused the village sarpanch and the gram panchayat secretary of orchestrating the killings. Based on the complaint, police registered a case against the sarpanch’s son, the panchayat secretary and a villager under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
A police official at Charakonda police station said carcasses of 12 dogs have been recovered so far and further investigation is underway to ascertain the full extent of the alleged culling.
Several incidents of mass killings of stray dogs were reported from different districts of Telangana in December last year and January, with activists alleging that the deaths were linked to promises made to villagers ahead of gram panchayat elections to address the stray dog menace. FIRs have been filed in multiple cases against panchayat presidents, their relatives, secretaries and others.
In a separate incident, animal welfare activist A Goutham alleged that around 50 stray dogs were illegally captured from Boppapur village in Siddipet district and relocated to a nearby forest area, in violation of animal protection laws. In his complaint to the police, he accused the village sarpanch and secretary of carrying out the act and demanded a fair probe and strict accountability.
