Supreme Court stays Madras High Court’s blanket ban on cow slaughter in public spaces

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday stayed a Madras High Court directive instructing the Tamil Nadu government to ban cow slaughter across the southern state.

A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta issued the interim order during a hearing on an appeal lodged by the Tamil Nadu administration against the High Court's 27 May directions.

The state government approached the apex court to challenge the Madras High Court decision, contending that the lower court had exceeded the scope of the public interest litigation. The initial petition had sought measures to stop the slaughter of cows in public areas, but resulted in a blanket prohibition on the slaughter of cows and calves throughout the state.

According to the appeal, the High Court’s ruling effectively barred cow slaughter even within authorised slaughterhouses, which the state argued runs counter to the legal framework regulating animal slaughter in Tamil Nadu.

The state government further submitted that the Tamil Nadu Animal Preservation Act 1958, the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Act 1998, the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules 2023, and prevailing food safety regulations are designed to regulate animal slaughter rather than enforce a total ban. On these grounds, the government had requested an interim stay on the execution of the High Court's directives.

The Tamil Nadu government initially moved the Supreme Court on 1 July to contest the 27 May High Court order, which implemented the absolute ban on the slaughter of cows and calves.

The state administration maintained that the High Court had overstepped statutory boundaries by ordering a blanket prohibition.

"In a writ petition seeking a direction to 'prevent the slaughter of cows in public places', the High Court ought to have travelled beyond the issue involved, to impose an absolute and blanket ban on the slaughter of cows and calves on the eve of Bakrid or any other day," the state government's appeal stated.

The High Court's 27 May ruling arose from a Public Interest Litigation filed by K Surya Prasanth, the General Secretary of the Hindu Makkal Katchi, who sought an order to prevent cow slaughter in public spaces. In response, the High Court directed the state "to ensure that no cow or calf is slaughtered on the eve of Bakrid or on any other day".

The government argued before the Supreme Court that the High Court's total ban on cow slaughter, extending even to licensed slaughterhouses, is legally unsustainable because it contradicts the existing statutes governing animal slaughter in Tamil Nadu.

The petition reiterated that the Tamil Nadu Animal Preservation Act 1958, the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Act 1998, the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules 2023, and relevant food safety protocols provide for the regulation of animal slaughter rather than an outright prohibition.

Consequently, the government requested and secured an interim stay on the implementation of the High Court's instructions.

ANI