A scuffle broke out among two groups of residents — one that feeds strays and another that wants them out — of the upscale Tata Avenida Housing Complex in New Town twice this month.
More than 20 stray dogs were being fed and taken care of by a group of residents of the complex.
But this was frowned upon by the other group as they were scared of the dogs and did not want the animals to roam free near the complex, a resident said.
Earlier this month, around 20 dogs had allegedly disappeared from the area. Only a lone stray was left behind which was caught using nets from the tennis court, the resident added.
A woman in her late 40s, who owns a flat in the complex, had lodged a complaint at Techno City Police station after she was allegedly assaulted inside the facility manager’s office by a couple of residents after she and a few others protested the catching of the lone stray using nets.
She filed the complaint on September 14.
On Sunday a similar complaint was filed by a 24-year-old woman, who alleged that she was attacked by a group of residents while she was trying to video record the discussions being held about the catching and relocation of the stray.
A senior officer from Bidhannagar commissionerate said they have started a probe after they received the two complaints.
Tata Avenida Housing Complex falls under the jurisdiction of Techno City police station which is around 2km from the housing complex.
“We will seek CCTV footage from the housing complex regarding the two incidents,” the officer said.
The complex does not have a residents’ welfare association (RWA) but an official who looks after the day-to-day running of the complex admitted that there had been “issues over strays inside the complex”.
A senior official of the New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA) said that they run a dog pound and the residents could have called them for assistance.
“We were not contacted. We will look into the matter” said the official
Brawls and fights over the feeding of stray dogs and cats on the city’s roads are not unusual.
Many feel there should be separate feeding areas for animals. Feeding animals in residential neighbourhoods, they say, attracts more stray animals and scares many residents and guests.
Assaulted
A woman in her late 30s was allegedly assaulted outside her home in Salt Lake’s Sector III area on Sunday night after she got into an altercation with a group of men while feeding some stray dogs on the road.
She lodged a police complaint with Bidhannagar south police station on Tuesday.
“We have registered a case of molestation and assault and are probing the case. CCTV footage from the area is being scanned to identify the attackers,” said a senior officer of Bidhannagar commissionerate.