India, Dec. 24 -- The Bombay High Court on Monday quashed an FIR lodged against a man for allegedly stopping a woman and her friends from feeding stray dogs near his housing society, saying the criminal complaint lodged against him, four months after the alleged altercation, was 'an abuse of the process of law'.

At a time when the feeding of stray dogs continues to be a contentious issue around the country, the high court said that obstructing the feeding of stray dogs in places that are not designated feeding spots does not amount to wrongful restraint under section 126 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Ayyapa Swami, 42, a Pune-based banker, had moved court after the FIR for wrongful restraint and other sections under the Bharatiya...