Kolkata: In the Bikramgarh animal cruelty case, the timely intervention by two pet rescuers saved five more dogs from being killed by the accused, a former live-in partner of the owner of the two pet puppies that were strangled to death, police said on Sunday.The carcasses of the two puppies had been kept preserved at Jadavpur police station for postmortem examination due on Monday.The accused, Sanjib Bhattacharya, who had killed the puppies in a rented apartment on Saturday, was produced before Alipore court on Sunday and remanded to judicial custody till Nov 23.The accused had allegedly planned to kill these animals and when the rescuers had intervened, he allegedly turned violent. The accused had attempted to attack the rescuers with boiling water.According to police, Bhattacharya, a married man, is also an accused in other cases of harassment and assault, lodged against him by other women at Jadavpur police station. The prosecution had strongly opposed his bail, citing the brutality of the alleged crime and the threat the accused had posed to the animals as well as the rescuers.Bhattacharya allegedly killed the two pet puppies, which were left behind by his former live-in partner—a DJ by profession—in his care as she moved out of the flat following their break-up.He had apparently video-called the woman and showed her one of the puppies hanging by a noose.The woman rescuers had rushed to the flat after getting information about the killings. One of the rescuers had alleged that Bhattacharya had allegedly molested and assaulted them when they intervened. He allegedly attempted to pour boiling water on the women but was stopped from doing so. Chief public prosecutor Sourin Ghosal said, “Killing of the dogs indicates the toxic mindset of the accused.”The prosecution cited several provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, alongside the sections of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.Defence lawyers, however, sought bail, arguing that the offences under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act were bailable. Probe is underway.
