A Public Interest Litigation is filed before the Supreme Court seeking to restraint the Central & State Governments from allowing slaughtering of any animal/chicken by way of Halal allowing them to bleed in painful condition till death.
The petitioner herein is Vishwa Jain Sangathan a registered association of followers of Jain religion believing in the complete and absolute non- violence towards any specie created by Nature. The petitioner represents the class of vegetarians suffering due to violent barbaric eating habits of some people consuming both domestic and wild animals for mere ‘change of taste’ jeopardizing the entire human species created by Nature through Natural Selection.
The petition states that atrocious habit of ‘change of taste’ of some directly hits at the very root of Article 21 which guarantees full protection of ‘right to life’ apart from violating Articles 48 & 48-A of the constitution. The petitioner has constitutional duty under Article 51-A (g) to protect other innocent other non-human lives created by Nature.
The petitioner herein is challenging the circular issued on 30.03.2020 by central Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying promoting eating of ‘meat’ in the midst of disastrous epidemic without even waiting for final conclusive result of research made at present by biologists all over world attempting to find out the ultimate carrier of this virus, especially when in the past all six corona virus since 2002 were found to be carried through animals into human cell. When whole world is awaiting the result of this research, the impugned circular, without any basis, succumbed to the pressure of meat lobby. The State forum called upon people to eat more and more meat.
The circular dated 30.03.2020 is advising people to eat meat in the midst of spread of this deadly virus is premature and has been issued when biologists all over world are still searching out its source and its interface with animal. This has been issued when WHO called to reduce risk of transmission of emerging pathogens from animals to humans in live animal markets or animal product markets (26 March 2020). Again, WHO in its emergency meeting called upon to simultaneously identify the risks linked to trade and consumption of potentially infected animal species and the communities or occupational groups more at risk across different interfaces. However, before awaiting result of this research, the impugned circular has been issued certifying chicken and meat as totally safe.
The petition has been preferred on the ground that the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying has neither any jurisdiction & functions nor expertise to issue such advisory. It could be issued only by Ministry of Health in consultation with ICMR. And also, the Ministry has failed to appreciate that in case of present SARS CoV-2 (Covid-19) injecting its protein spikes into nuclei of human cell, the human cell gets infected and during his life time he could transmit the same to both human and animal cells.
The petition prays for following reliefs:-
- Direction to Central Government to constitute an non-governmental independent High Level Research Committee in co-ordination with concerned departments of Medical Colleges/Universities to aid and assist in making empirical research examining susceptibility of animals (to be slaughtered for the purpose of consumption) to corona virus including searching out animal – human interface identifying source/transmission of all types of deadly virus.
- Direction to the central government to frame National Policy for Welfare of Animal/Birds/Fishes laying the road map for phasing out complete killing, torture or hurting of any other non-human species created by Nature except in case required for human survival.
- Direction to Centre Government and all States from allowing slaughtering of any animal/chicken by way of Halal allowing them to bleed in painful condition till death including skinning of animals before death.
- To quash the circular dated 30.03.2020 issued by Ministry of Fisheries & Animal Husbandry for violating Articles 14, 21, 48, 48A, 51A(g) of the Constitution of India.
-India Legal Bureau