Govt body to launch campaign against animal sacrifice

The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) is launching a campaign against the slaughter of animals for sacrifice.

“Animal sacrifice is punishable. People are unaware and link it to religion. In no religion can you kill animals,” said SP Gupta, chairman of the board, a statutory advisory body under the union environment ministry.

There is no blanket ban on animal sacrifice in India. The controversial Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules 2017 notified by the environment ministry last year banned the sale of cattle including bulls, bullocks, cows, buffaloes, steers, heifers and calves, and camels for slaughter, including for religious purposes.

The rules were criticised for squeezing supplies to India’s meat industry that mostly employs Muslims and for hurting farmers who find it difficult to deal with non-milch cattle.

The clause regarding sacrifice under the rules was stayed by the Supreme Court and later the rules were themselves sought to be replaced with diluted rules by the environment ministry, dropping slaughter provisions altogether.

However, according to Gupta, there are provisions under various other laws regarding the slaughter of animals and specific guidelines within the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, that if strictly imposed, rule out the possibility of performing sacrifices as they are done now.

The Animal Welfare Board of India is only an advisory agency but it has a wide mandate and is able to recruit functionaries at the state and district levels to watch out for violations of provisions under the act.

“There is no ban per se. If it is in your religion, there is a criteria on how to kill animals but no one follows it,” Gupta said.

Animal rights activists like PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), India also oppose animal sacrifice.

“We are against all kinds of animal sacrifice,” Manilal Valliyate, CEO of PETA India, said.

Mohammed Abdul Faheem Qureshi, an advocate and president of the All India Jamiatul Quresh Action Committee, had

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challenged the centre’s controversial cattle trade rules in the Supreme Court, and is critical of the AWBI campaign that he believes targets Muslims.

“They are only concerned about cattle. They are targeting the Muslim community,” Qureshi said. “If they impose the provisions, every action will be an offence.”

“If the state government does not act on complaints, we will act. We will file complaints with law enforcement, and if that does not work, we will file cases in court against the authorities,” Gupta said.