Ballia: Horse Suspended by Front Legs and Ruthlessly Beaten—FIR Registered Following PETA India Complaint

For Immediate Release:

29 April 2026

Contact:

Meet Ashar; [email protected]

Anushka Yadav; [email protected]

Ballia — After a video went viral on Instagram showing a horse being ruthlessly beaten with a stick while being suspended by front legs to a cart for being unable to carry heavy loads, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals India (PETA India) worked with the Superintendent of Police, Ballia, and the Sehtawar Police Station, and with animal rights activist, Rishika Roy, to ensure that a first information report (FIR) was registered under relevant stringent sections of the law.

An FIR was registered under Section 325 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and Section 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960. Section 325 of the BNS, 2023, categorises mischief by killing, poisoning, maiming, or rendering useless of any animal as a cognisable offence and prescribes a punishment of imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years, or with a fine, or with both.

The video of the abuse and the FIR copy are available upon request.

It has been reported that the accused later sold the horse and has since moved to Deoria. PETA India has urged the Ballia Police to trace the horse’s whereabouts, seize the victim horse, and summon the accused to Ballia for investigation.

“This horse has endured unimaginable pain and suffering. Those who abuse animals often move on to harming humans. For everyone’s safety, it’s imperative that members of the public report cruelty to animals such as this,” says PETA India Cruelty Response Coordinator Ishani Rathee. “We commend Shri Omvir Singh, IPS, Superintendent of Police, Ballia; Shri Dinesh Kumar Shukla, Additional Superintendent of Police, Ballia; and Shri Anil Kumar Singh, Sub Inspector and in charge of Sehtawar Police Station for registering the FIR and sending a clear message that cruelty to animals will not be tolerated.”

PETA India recommends that perpetrators of animal abuse undergo a psychiatric evaluation and receive counselling, as abusing animals indicates a deep psychological disturbance. Research shows that people who commit acts of cruelty to animals are often repeat offenders who move on to hurting other animals, including humans. A study published in Forensic Research & Criminology International Journal stated, “Those who engage in cruelty to animals to animals were [three] times more likely to commit other crimes, including murder, rape, robbery, assault, harassment, threats, and drug/substance abuse.”

PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way” – has long campaigned to strengthen the PCA Act, 1960, which contains outdated, inadequate penalties, such as a maximum fine of only Rs 50 for convicted first-time offenders (although the BNS, 2023, prescribes stronger punishments). In a proposal sent to the central government regarding an amendment to the PCA Act, PETA India has recommended significantly increasing penalties for cruelty to animals.

For more information, please visit PETAIndia.com or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.

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