In cities across the country, the feral animals are both loved and feared. The judges are forging into intensely emotional territory by going after the ones in the capital.

Several politicians and celebrities, including Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, actors Janhvi Kapoor and Varun Dhawan, and filmmaker Siddharth Anand have expressed their disapproval of the order.

Stray dog control has become a lightning rod civic issue in Delhi, NCR and other Indian cities. While many residents see them as a menace, others consider them like family; court directives appear Herculean to implement,