Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Thursday, April 23, directed the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner (Charminar Zone) of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to submit an action taken report on complaints relating to the illegal transportation and slaughter of cattle within city limits.
Justice NV Shravan Kumar passed the direction while hearing a writ petition filed by the Telangana Goshala Federation, which has sought enforcement of provisions under the GHMC Act that prohibit keeping animals in a manner causing nuisance and bar the entry of cattle into the city for human consumption without the written permission of the Commissioner.
The counsel for the petitioner submitted that thousands of cattle were being transported into the city without requisite permission and slaughtered illegally, and that no action had been taken despite repeated representations to authorities, particularly around Eid-al-Adha, also known as Bakrid.
During the hearing, the judge asked whether goshalas themselves would require permission to house cattle if the transport was alleged to be illegal in the first place. The counsel responded that while goshalas were also required to obtain permission, they were currently being used to shelter cattle rescued by the police.
Taking note of the submissions, the court directed the state to obtain further instructions and place before it a brief note on the action taken so far.
The matter is expected to come up for further hearing after the state files its report.
