Public interest petitions must prioritize public welfare, ensuring that cleanliness in public parks is maintained by enforcing responsibilities on pet owners and civic authorities.

JUDGMENT :

(N.V. Anjaria, CJ., K.V. Aravind, J.)

Today, when the present petition came up for consideration, learned Advocate for the petitioner filed memo dated 21st November 2024 seeking to withdraw the petition on the ground that the prayer has become infructuous.

2. Since this petition is public interest petition, before permitting withdrawal straightway and disposing of the petition, the Court thought it fit to examine and satisfy itself that public interest involved is not shelved by permitting withdrawal or by disposing of the petition.

2.1 The Court is therefore inclined to consider and survey the subject-matter.

2.2 The promotion of public interest should be paramount which should not be allowed to be compromised in the process. As the involvement of personal interest is the ground for entertaining or refusing to entertain the public interest petition, similar criteria would apply when the public interest petitioner seeks to withdraw. In any view, public interest aspect has to be examined by the court even while disposing of such petition upon withdrawal.

2.3 Once a public interest petition is filed and the Court takes cognisance therefore, the subject matter of public interest travels into the domain of the Court and the Court assumes jurisdiction. A public interest petition has to be normally taken to its logical end and cannot be permitted to be readily withdrawn midway without examining pros and con of such withdrawal.

3. The petitioner happens to be a Non Governmental Organisation which filed the present public interest litigation wanting to espouse the cause of lack of cleanliness resulting due to irresponsible pet parenting in public parks and further complaining about failure of the respondent authorities to maintain cleanliness in that regard and clean climate in general in the public parks and gardens. They are the State of Karnataka through its Department of Horticulture and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike through its Commissioner.

3.1 It is the case of the petitioner that many complaints are aired from the general public and the pet parent community about irresponsible conduct on the part of a section of pet owners especially in relation to the cleaning up of excrement of their pets from the public parks which are situated within the limits of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which are in total 1288 in numbers.

3.2 It is stated that a need has arisen to sensitize the pet parents who bring their dogs in the public park to use the disposal bags to ensure that the pets refuse and excrement are properly disposed of maintaining the decency and cleanliness. It is the case inter alia that the premium garden places in the City of Bengaluru like Cubbon Park need to be protected from deviating conduct by the dog owners who visit the park with their pets. It is also imperative, it was stated, to ensure cleanliness in general, in all respects in public parks.

3.3 It was contended that one of the functions of the BBMP under the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike Act, 2020 is to provide and maintain the urban amenities and facilities, such as parks and gardens. The BBMP has also got powers to make bye-laws in relation to regulation of the use of the parks and gardens, etc. under Section 381(22) of the Act. It is the grievance of the petitioner that despite the guidelines framed, which are to be read with the Solid Waste Management Bye-Laws, 2020, the norms are not adhered to. It was submitted that Bye-laws also include prohibition of nuisance at public places which are also not enforced in true spirit.

3.4 Interestingly, in paragraph 6 of the petition, following averments are made, which have gone undenied,

“...some of these parks have community dogs that already live inside such parks. Cubbon park and Lal bagh have street dogs that permanently reside within the park premises. Community driven groups called the “Cubbon park Canines’’, which is a facebook and whatsapp group, take care of the welfare of these dogs, incl