Did Ratan Tata’s pet dog ‘Goa’ die days after the industrialist’s demise? Mumbai cop says ‘verify facts before…’

Amid viral messages on social media regarding the “death of Ratan Tata's pet dog Goa” a few days after the industrialist's demise on October 9, a senior inspector with the Mumbai Police quashed the rumours and said that the canine was doing 'fine'.

Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, Ratan Tata, passed away last week at 86 after a brief hospitalisation. In social media, there was a lot of confusion regarding the death of Ratan Tata’s pet dog, Goa, with some claiming that the canine died shortly after Tata’s passing.

Goa is a permanent resident of the Tata Group’s office at Bombay House and is said to be Ratan Tata’s favourite among the many stray dogs who called Bombay House their home.

Tata often advocated the welfare of stray dogs and urged people to be sensitive towards them. The visionary business leader's pet dog, Goa, was also a stray dog.

The dog was also brought to Ratan Tata’s funeral to pay his respects to the industrialist and may have taken part in the Parsi ritual of Sagdid.

Now with reports on the 'death of Goa' going viral on the internet, the Mumbai Police's Senior Inspector Sudhir Kudalkar confirmed that Goa is very much alive. Himself an animal lover, Kudalkar confirmed the fact from Ratan Tata’s assistant Shantanu Naidu, who said that Goa was doing well.

“I verified this with Shantanu Naidu, who is also known as a close friend of Tata Ji and he confirmed that Goa is doing fine,” said the Mumbai cop in his Instagram post.

Here's the Instagram post:

Stationed at the MHB Police Station in Borivali, Kudalkar regularly feeds and cares for stray animals, particularly dogs and cats. His compassion for animals has earned him recognition from organisations like PETA.

He also cautioned people against believing WhatsApp forwards without verifying them first, reported Hindustan Times.