Animal rights activists are aghast that the person who flung a dog down from a five-storey building in Chennai, medical student Gautam Sudarshan and his classmate who filmed it, Ashish Paul, were bailed out within minutes of their seeking release after being produced at a magistrate’s court in Sriperumbudur on Wednesday afternoon.

Shock and disbelief was writ large on the faces of animal rights activists, who were demanding the strictest of punishments and even ouster from medical course they were undergoing. An activist, who was among the complainants as well as led the police to the medical college on Tuesday said that they will challenge the bail in a higher court.

It sure is a day of mourning for animal lovers as they see a perpetrator of a crime walking out so easily.

Other activists do not see much hope in an appeal but would want police to speed up investigation and hope it filed chargesheet without delay, so that the trial can proceed quickly and the duo punished under the cruelty to animals act, under which they have been booked.

Meanwhile, activists located the dog near the five storey building and took it to veterinary hospital where doctors examined the dog and ruled it out of danger. It has a fracture and is recovering, doctor attending on the dog told television channels.

Last evening, two police teams were sent to Tirunelveli and Nagercoil, to arrest the students from their homes. However, on Wednesday, parents of the two medical students handed them over to the police, who produced them before the magistrate.

The magistrate granted them bail once they sought release on bail.