The Tamil Nadu government has moved the Supreme Court against a Madras High Court order that directed authorities to ensure that no cow or calf is slaughtered in the state on Bakrid or on any other day. The state contended that the High Court turned a limited dispute into a statewide ban, even though the Tamil Nadu Animal Preservation Act, 1958, regulates cow slaughter rather than imposing an absolute prohibition.
According to the state, the Act allows cows above 10 years of age to be slaughtered only if they are unfit for work or breeding and only after a certificate is issued by the competent authority. It also argues that other laws, including the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Slaughter House) Rules, 2001, the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Act, 1998, and the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules, 2023, regulate slaughter conditions but do not create a total ban.
According to the state, by ordering a total prohibition, the High Court effectively replaced the law made by the legislature with its judgement.
The Madras High Court’s order, passed by the bench of Justice GR Swaminathan and Justice V Lakshminarayanan, came in response to a petition filed by K Surya Prasanth, a Coimbatore resident and general secretary of the Hindu Makkal Katchi, who sought a ban on cow slaughter in public places ahead of Bakrid.
The court relied on the Tamil Nadu Animal Preservation Act, 1958, and earlier Supreme Court rulings while directing the state to ensure that no cow or calf is slaughtered in Tamil Nadu on Bakrid or on any other day.
The order also directed the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police to ensure strict enforcement and prevent slaughter from taking place. The court reasoned that animal-preservation laws must be strictly enforced and that cow slaughter is not an essential part of the festival, according to Live Law.
The High Court referred mainly to State of West Bengal vs Ashutosh Lahiri (1995), observing that slaughtering cows on Bakrid is “neither essential nor necessarily required as part of the religious ceremony”.
This story was written by a student interning with TNM.