The Uttarkhand High Court has issued a slew of directions to the state government for the welfare of cattle, including strict enforcement of the ban on cow slaughter and sale of beef.
A bench of Acting Chief Justice Rajeev Sharma and Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari issued the directions invoking the doctrine of 'parens patriae.' The doctrine allows courts to be the legal guardian of cows and other cattle.
Issuing 30-odd directions, the court ruled that "no one in Uttarakhand" would "slaughter or cause to be slaughtered or offer or cause to be offered for slaughter, any cow, bull, bullock, heifer or calf forthwith."
The court also ordered that "no person shall sell beef or beef products in any form throughout the state".
It also ordered prosecution under the Indian Penal Code, the Prevention of Cruelty of Animals Act, 1960 and the Uttarakhand Protection of Cow Progeny Act, 2007 against the owners of any cattle which are found on the streets and other public places.
The court went on to direct chief engineers and the municipal authorities to ensure that "no stray cattle, including cows and oxen come onto the roads".
All the district magistrates in the state were ordered to build a cow shed for every cluster of 25 villages within a year.
The court gave the ruling after a detailed examination of the plight of animals in the state, besides dwelling upon various constitutional and statutory provisions for their welfare and issued strict directions for enforcement of those provisions.
The ruling was given on a plea by Alim, a resident of Sohalpur Gada village near Roorkee.
In his plea, Alim had told the court that the cows were being slaughtered in a brutal manner in his village.
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