ANIMAL KINGDOM HAS RIGHTS OF A LIVING PERSON, SAYS U’KHAND HC

A year after ruling that the rivers Ganga and Yamuna are living entities, Uttarakhand high court on Wednesday declared the entire animal kingdom including birds and aquatic animals are legal entities that have the rights of a ”living person”, and that a custodian will have to be appointed to protect their rights.

A division bench of justices Rajiv Sharma and Lok Pal Singh, said:“Theentireanimalkingdom including avian and aquatic (species) are declared as legal entities having a distinct persona with corresponding rights, duties and liabilities of a living person”.

Uttarakhand’s acting chief wildlife warden Rajeev Bhartari, when contacted, said he could not comment on the judgment till he examines it. Other senior state government officials refused to comment.

The court also said in the past various courts have given similar rights to corporations, Hindu idols, holy scriptures and rivers. To ensure “greater welfare” of animals, they need to conferred with the status of “legal entity/ legal person” as animals cannot be treated merely as a “property.

The Supreme Court had stayed a similar order that the Uttarakhand high court had issued in March last year that accorded the status of “living entity” to Ganga and Yamuna rivers .

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