Centre's cattle ban is 'illogical', mulling legal options: Kerala Govt.

With the Centre banning the sale and purchase of cattle for slaughter from animal markets through an environment ministry notification, Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Isaac on Saturday said that the decision was 'illogical' and the state would introspect what it could do legally.

"The government cannot decide the choice of our food. The decision seems illogical. The state government will look into it and see if anything can be done legally," Isaac told media here.

Meanwhile, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) led LDF government in Kerala and the Congress-led UDF attacked the Centre for the ban on the sale and purchase of cattle for slaughter.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the Centre's decision was surprising which was unsuitable for a democratic nation.

The Centre's notification has restricted the sale of animals for slaughter which were used for agricultural purposes.

The environment ministry this week notified a regulation under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 prohibiting sale of cattle through animal markets across the country.

Regulating animal trade is a state business but animal welfare is a central subject, thereby providing the window for the ministry to notify the rule.