The Calcutta High Court on Thursday refused to interfere with a notification issued by the West Bengal government restricting the slaughter of bulls, bullocks, cows, calves and buffaloes ahead of the upcoming Bakr Eid (Eid al-Adha) festival.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Partha Sarathi Sen dismissed a batch of petitions challenging the May 13 public notice issued under the provisions of the West Bengal Animal Slaughter Control Act.
The Court observed that the notification had been issued in compliance with earlier directions passed by a coordinate Bench of the High Court in 2018, which had already attained finality. In view of the earlier orders, the Bench held that there were no grounds to stay or quash the public notice.
Under the May 13 notification, the State government directed that bulls, bullocks, cows, calves and buffaloes cannot be slaughtered without obtaining a fitness certificate declaring the animal unfit for breeding, draught or agricultural purposes. The notification further stated that only animals certified as unfit could be slaughtered and that such slaughter could take place only in authorised slaughterhouses. The notification also empowered authorities to inspect premises in order to prevent illegal slaughter of animals.
While declining to set aside the notification, the High Court observed that the State government must ensure that an effective administrative mechanism exists for issuing certificates required under the Act and the applicable Rules. The Bench also directed the State to examine whether adequate infrastructure, authorised slaughterhouses and responsible officers were available across the State for implementation of the Act and Rules.
One of the petitions was filed by Trinamool Congress MLA Akhruzzaman, who argued that the State government had failed to exercise its powers under Section 12 of the West Bengal Animal Slaughter Control Act to grant exemption for religious sacrifice during Eid al-Adha. Section 12 empowers the State government to exempt, through a general or special order and subject to conditions, the slaughter of animals for religious purposes.
The petitioner argued that for a large section of the Muslim community, sacrifice of larger animals such as buffaloes, bulls and bullocks was economically more practical than goats or sheep, whose prices significantly increased before Bakr Eid. Another plea sought inclusion of additional conditions in the State notification, including a prohibition on slaughter of animals in open public places and a declaration that cow sacrifice was not an essential religious practice under Islam.
While dealing with the issue, the High Court referred to earlier rulings of the Supreme Court holding that sacrifice of cows was not an essential part of the Id-Uz-Zuha festival or a mandatory religious requirement under Islam.
The Court directed the State government to consider amending the public notice by incorporating conditions prohibiting slaughter in open public places and clarifying that cow sacrifice was not part of any religious requirement or festival.
At the same time, the Bench clarified that the State government was competent to take a decision under Section 12 regarding the grant of exemption for religious purposes. Considering that Bakr Eid was expected to take place on May 27 or 28, the Court directed the State to take an appropriate decision within 24 hours from communication of the order.
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