Cat burglary? Bombay High Court asks Pune police to reply to allegation that they seized 56 cats

The cops and activists allegedly seized the cats in September 2017.

Representational image. (Picture: Wikimedia Commons/Salz der Erde)

The Bombay High Court has asked the Pune police to file reply on a Pune resident's allegations that they seized 56 cats from her apartment after breaking in in the middle of the night.

Pune resident Sangeeta Kapur told the court that she was keeping the 56 stray cats she had rescued in one of her two apartments. She alleged that the cops came with some 'vigilantes', broke into her apartment illegally and took the cats away to a shelter.

She told the court that a case had been filed against her for cruelty to animals, and that she had not seen any of the cats since they were seized in September 2017. Kapur asked the court to declare the seizure illegal and to instruct the cops to return her cats to her. Kapur has also alleged that cash and jewellery were also stolen during the seizure.

The cops have filed a case against Kapur, alleging she was keeping the cats in unhygienic conditions and was not feeding them properly. The court has asked the police to file a reply to Kapur's allegations within three weeks.

Reports said Kapur, a fashion designer, had also called on the court to order the suspension of the AWBI ID card of the activist involved in the case. 

Kapur lives with her mother and sister in two apartments on Pune's Kondhwa Road. She claims to have rescued all 56 cats over the years.