Mahua Moitra row: Who has the right to Henry? Here’s what lawyers say about pet custody disputes

Over the past fortnight, Lok Sabha parliamentarian Mahua Moitra and her estranged romantic partner, lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai, have been trading charges about the custody of a pet dog named Henry.

Moitra and Dehadrai appear to have shared possession of the Rottweiler but Henry is currently believed to be in the MP’s custody. Underlying an apparent custody battle are Dehadrai’s allegations that Moitra accepted bribes to ask questions about tycoon Gautam Adani and his business conglomerate in Parliament.

He alleged on X, formerly known as Twitter, that Moitra had “kidnapped” the dog.

The tussle for Henry has highlighted a vacuum in Indian law relating how custody of a pet will be decided if a couple separates. Legal experts Scroll to said there is no law to deal with such a situation.

The law, instead, considers pets as property, leaving courts to decide on such cases as they would a property dispute. Co-owners have no option other than arriving at a mutually agreeable settlement for custody through negotiation.

Who should keep Henry?

The debate about Henry started early in October, when Dehadrai filed a complaint with the Central Bureau of Investigation accusing Moitra of accepting cash and gifts as bribes for asking specific questions targeting the Adani Group in the Parliament. He also wrote...

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