Mumbai Man Allegedly Culled Pigeons, Sold The Meat To A Restaurant Which Served It As Chicken

Mumbai Police booked eight people after a man allegedly reared pigeons on a rooftop, culled them, and sold their meat to a restaurant.

According to the police, one Abhishek Sawant, the resident of a housing society near Sion and the managing committee members have been booked in a complaint filed by a retired army officer.

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What the complainant said?

In his complaint, Haresh Gaglani, a retired army officer, alleged that Sawant was rearing pigeons in a cage on the building's roof and later culling and selling their meat to a nearby restaurant.

According to Gaglani, Sawant has been rearing pigeons on the rooftop since March this year, but the society members remained silent, despite knowing about it.

He also claimed that he had photographs and videos of the birds to prove the allegations.

"Gaglani has alleged that Sawant reared pigeons and their young ones. When they grew up, he culled them and sold them to a hotel and beer bar located below the building. The hotelier cooked these pigeons and served them to his clients as chicken," a police officer told The Times of India.

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Residents reject the allegations

Though a police complaint has been registered under IPC sections 428 for mischief involved in killing or maiming animals and 447 for criminal trespass, no arrests have been made so far.

The accused, however, have rejected the allegations and claimed that Gaglani has been filing false complaints against other society residents.

"I am a pure Jain and we will not allow such things to happen in our society. He has a problem with each member of the building," Dinesh Damania a resident of the building said.

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It is illegal to kill pigeons

It should be noted that it is illegal to kill pigeons In India.

Pigeons are protected under Section 428 and Section 429 of the Indian Penal Code. Wild pigeons are further protected under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.

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