Supreme Court Stays Madras High Court's Direction Banning Cow And Calf Slaughter In Tamil Nadu

A Special Leave Petition (SLP) has been filed by the State government against the May 27 judgment of a Division Bench of the Madras High Court, which directed the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police to ensure that no cow or calf is slaughtered anywhere in Tamil Nadu, not only on the eve of Bakrid but on any other day as well.

What happened before the Madras High Court?

Notably, on May 27, the Madras High Court directed the Tamil Nadu government to ensure that no cow or calf is slaughtered in the State “on the eve of Bakrid or on any other day”, while stressing strict enforcement of existing cattle preservation laws and government orders.

A division bench of Justice G.R. Swaminathan and Justice V. Lakshminarayanan had passed the order on a petition seeking action against the alleged slaughter of cows in public places ahead of Bakrid celebrations. The bench had directed the Chief Secretary and the Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) to issue instructions across Tamil Nadu to ensure compliance with the order. Court further clarified that slaughtering of animals could take place only in authorised slaughterhouses established under law.

The petition had been filed by K. Surya Prasanth, State general secretary of Indu Makkal Katchi, who had alleged that cows were being illegally slaughtered in public places in parts of Coimbatore. He had claimed to have submitted a representation to authorities earlier this month seeking preventive action, but no effective steps were taken.

During the hearing, court took exception to a counter affidavit filed by local police authorities stating that temporary sheds had been identified for slaughter activities in non-public areas. The bench had questioned how makeshift structures could be treated as legally recognised slaughter facilities and said the police had no authority to designate slaughtering locations. Referring to the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules, 2023, court had observed that slaughtering activities could only be carried out in officially designated slaughterhouses approved by competent local authorities.

The bench had also relied upon Article 48 of the Constitution, which directs the State to take steps for preserving and improving cattle breeds and prohibiting the slaughter of cows, calves and other milch and draught cattle. The judges noted that cow protection had historically been regarded as an important constitutional and social issue.

Court had referred to earlier Supreme Court rulings, including Mohammed Hanif Quareshi v. State of Bihar (1958) and State of West Bengal v. Ashutosh Lahiri (1994), to hold that slaughtering cows was not an essential religious practice associated with Bakrid. According to the bench, Islamic religious observance during Bakrid did not mandatorily require sacrifice of cows alone and other animals could also be sacrificed.

The order had came a day before Bakrid celebrations. Tamil Nadu currently permits slaughter of certain categories of cattle subject to statutory conditions, unlike several States that impose a complete prohibition on cow slaughter.