New Delhi: A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court, wanting the entire animal kingdom, including avian and aquatic species, to be declared as “legal entities” having distinct persona and corresponding rights of a living person. This is for their protection.
The PIL also wants all citizens of India to be declared as loco parentis (Latin for ‘in the place of a parent’ which means legal responsibility of a person or organization to take on some of the functions and responsibilities of a parent) for the protection of animals from cruelty and abuse and to ensure their welfare.
The PIL has been filed by People’s Charioteer Organization (PCO) an NGO from Allahabad. It states: “As per our Vedas, Dharma-Shastras in Sanatan Dharma, the teachings of the Quran, Hadith in Islam, and the teachings of the Bible in Christianity, animals are accorded similar status as that of humans and have been recognized as conscious beings, and cruelty towards any living being has been severely frowned upon, abhorred and castigated, and likewise in all cultures, religions, and ways of lives.”
The petition has further sought-following directions:
· “To the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) to report and publish data and statistics relating to animal cruelty/crimes against animals, including cases reported and convictions ordered thereupon under various penal statutes, in the Annual NCRB reports under distinct/separate heads;
· “To the Central Government to form an Independent Committee monitored by this Hon’ble Court consisting of members from all the relevant departments/ministries which can review the entire legal framework and find pitfalls in the existing legal framework in order to curb the menace of Cruelty against Animals, so as to enable rehauling of the existing legislative mechanisms;
· “Framing guidelines in order to fill the gaping legal lacunae with an objective to ensure and implement the effective and purposeful legal framework for the protection and welfare of Animals in India, in the exercise of its inherent power under Article 142 of the Constitution, in the interest of justice and fairness; or
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· “any other appropriate order”.
The petition pointed out that there are gaping holes in the legal, legislative and statutory framework of India, “owing to which we’re witnessing a prevailing epidemic of cases of Animal Abuse and Animal Cruelty. Over the years, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 has lost its glory due to lack of enforcement and inadequate/liberal penal provisions.”
-India Legal Bureau