The Madras high court on Wednesday directed the Tamil Nadu chief secretary and director general of police to ensure that no cow slaughter takes place in” public places or other non-designated areas” during Bakrid celebrations on May 28.
A bench of justices GR Swaminathan and V Lakshminarayanan said slaughter of animals can take place only in slaughterhouses or in places specifically designated by the competent authorities under the law.
“Slaughter cannot be done in any place you want…The question of carrying out slaughter in a non-designated place does not arise at all,” the court said, adding that state authorities remained “duty-bound to enforce the applicable statutory provisions.”
The bench passed the order on a petition filed by one K Surya, a Coimbatore resident who alleged that local authorities had made arrangements for slaughtering cows and calves in places that had not been notified or designated as slaughterhouses ahead of Bakrid or Eid-ul-Zuha celebrations.
The petitioner claimed that the local administration had permitted creation of “temporary sheds” for slaughter. He said he had submitted a representation on May 18 to the local police and collectorate seeking immediate steps to prevent cow slaughter in public places and rescue cows allegedly brought for illegal slaughter. However, he did not receive any response.
{{/usCountry}}The petitioner claimed that the local administration had permitted creation of “temporary sheds” for slaughter. He said he had submitted a representation on May 18 to the local police and collectorate seeking immediate steps to prevent cow slaughter in public places and rescue cows allegedly brought for illegal slaughter. However, he did not receive any response.
{{/usCountry}}The Coimbatore police meanwhile, filed an affidavit before the high court saying that officials had earmarked certain “temporary places” for cow slaughter.
Questioning the stand, the court asked how temporary sheds could qualify as lawful slaughtering places when the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules mandated that slaughter be carried out in designated spots only. It added that the police could not independently decide which places could function as slaughtering areas.
The court also noted that the petitioner’s representation and prayer in the writ petition were “not happily worded.” However, it said this would not prevent it from examining the substantive issue raised before it.
Referring to a 2020 Division Bench order and a 1976 Government Order on cow slaughter, the Court clarified that Tamil Nadu law did not impose an absolute prohibition on cow slaughter in every circumstance. However, it held that slaughter became impermissible unless authorities satisfied the statutory conditions.