Cattle slaughter ban: What Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Kerala High Courts had to say

Protest against cattle slaughter ban outside IIT Madras. (Source: ANI/Twitter)

Cattle slaughter ban: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India issued new rules last week banning the sale of cattle, including cows, for slaughter at animal markets across the country. The list of animals included under these new rules included bulls, bullocks, cows, buffalos, steers, heifers, calves and camels. The new rules titled ‘Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017’, mandate the constitution of District Animal Market Monitoring Committee by the District Magistrate or Collector and Animal Market Committee at the local level in consultation with District Magistrate and the State Board for the management of animal markets in the district. However, the decision has seen mixed reaction from people. Here’s what some High Courts of the country had to say:

Tamil Nadu High Court

Objecting Centre’s decision, the Madras High Court on Tuesday granted a four-week stay on the ban of the sale of cattle meant for slaughter. The interim order was passed by a division bench comprising Justice M V Muralidharan and Justice CV Karthikeyan in response to a PIL filed at the high court.

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Kerala HC backs Centre’s notification on cattle slaughter #WATCH report on #BeefRage pic.twitter.com/7CIg2OyQX3

— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) May 31, 2017

Kerala High Court

Supporting Centre’s decision, Kerala HC disposed of a PIL filed against the ban by saying that new regulation doesn’t impose a complete ban on cattle slaughter. “The PIL does not stand since the Centre’s regulation only bans the sale of cattle for slaughter in animal markets. It has not banned cattle slaughter at all. Can’t the sale and slaughtering be done at home or other places? There is no breach of citizens’ rights here. Seems like people are raising objections without even reading the regulation,” the bench remarked, according to a report by The Indian Express.

Rajasthan High Court

Going one step ahead, Rajasthan HC on Wednesday demanded that cow should be made the national animal. This recommendation was made during the hearing over the Hingonia Gaushala matter and the Court added that punishment for cow slaughter should be escalated to life imprisonment. Judge Mahesh Chandra Sharma also instructed the forest department to plant 5,000 plants in the cowshed every year.