What is the punishment for killing a dog in India?

Section 325 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 reads: whoever commits mischief by killing, poisoning, maiming or rendering useless any animal shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to five years, or with fine, or with both. The Sanhita defines an animal as any living creature other than a human being, so the section covers a street dog as fully as a pedigree pet.

It replaced two sections of the old Indian Penal Code. NCRB's correspondence table shows IPC 428 (killing or maiming an animal of the value of ten rupees) and IPC 429 (cattle of any value, or any animal of the value of fifty rupees) merged into the single BNS section 325, which no longer depends on the animal's value. The new criminal laws came into force on 1 July 2024, so an offence committed after that date is charged under the BNS, and older news articles quoting IPC 428 and 429 are out of date.

Because they have not been raised since 1982. Section 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 sets a fine of Rs 10 to Rs 50 for a first offence, and Rs 25 to Rs 100, or up to three months in jail, or both, for a repeat offence within three years. AWBI's Acts page, checked on 21 October 2026, lists only the 1960 Act and its 1982 amendment, so these are the amounts in force today as far as the official listing shows.

That is why killing and poisoning cases are usually registered under BNS section 325 as well, which carries up to five years. The PCA Act still matters: section 31 makes the killing offence in section 11(1)(l) cognizable, section 29 lets a court take the animal away and bar a convicted person from keeping animals, and section 36 says a prosecution under the Act cannot start more than three months after the offence.

Yes, a few, and they are narrow. Section 11(3) of the PCA Act excludes the destruction of stray dogs in lethal chambers or by methods prescribed under the law, destruction under the authority of another law, and killing animals for food unless it involves unnecessary pain. Section 28 says killing in a manner required by a community's religion is not an offence under the Act.

For street dogs, the Supreme Court's judgment of 19 May 2026 allows authorities to consider euthanasia only for rabid, incurably ill or demonstrably dangerous dogs, after assessment by qualified veterinary experts and strictly within the PCA Act and the ABC Rules, 2023. None of this lets a private person poison or beat a dog. If a dog in your area seems dangerous, report it to the municipal animal helpline instead.