Bombay High Court Allows Slaughtering Of Animals For Bakri Eid In Protected Area Around Vishalgad Fort

The Bombay High Court has permitted the slaughtering of animals for the festival of Bakri Eid on June 17, 2024, in the protected area around the Vishalgad Fort in Kolhapur District.

A division bench of Justice BP Colabawalla and Justice Firdosh P. Pooniwalla granted interim relief to petitioners in petitions challenging the ban on animal slaughter in the area issued by various authorities, including the Director of Archaeology and Museums, Bombay, the Superintendent of Police, Kolhapur, and the Chief Executive Officer, Zilla Parishad, Kolhapur.

“We are of the opinion that at least for the festival of Bakri Eid which is on 17th June 2024, and Urus which is till 21st June 2024, the slaughtering of animals by the Petitioners can be permitted. However, we make it clear that the actual killing or sacrifices of animals or birds shall only take place in the closed premises at Gat No. 19 which is a private land owned by Shri Mubarak Usman Mujawar. The killing of animals and birds certainly should not be done in an open place or in a public place”, the court held.

The petitions challenged communications from the authorities, which cited the Maharashtra Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Rules, 1962 (1962 Rules) and a previous High Court order from 1998 that prohibited animal slaughter in the name of deities at public places. The communications stated that the slaughtering of animals within the protected monument area of Vishalgad was prohibited under Rule 8(c) of the 1962 Rules, which bans cooking and consumption of food within protected monuments.

Assistant Government Pleader SD Vyas defended the ban citing the Monuments Act, 1960 and the 1962 Rules. She argued that the prohibition on cooking and consumption of food within protected monuments extended to the slaughtering of animals as it is a part of cooking food.

The court examined the definitions provided in the Monuments Act, 1960, particularly Sections 2(10) and 2(11), which differentiate between a "protected area" and a "protected monument." The court noted that while Vishalgad Fort is a protected monument, the surrounding area of 333 acres and 19 gunthas is designated as a protected area. The prohibitions under Rule 8(c) apply specifically to protected monuments, not protected areas, the court noted.

The court noted that an affidavit from the Assistant Director, Department of Archaeology, Pune, supported this distinction.

The court said that interpreting the entire 333-acre area as a protected monument, which would prevent the residents within this area from cooking and consuming food, is absurd.

“It is not in dispute that in the protected area, namely, 333 acres 19 gunthas, there are about 575 people and about 107 families residing in Vishalgad…If we were to hold that the entire area of 333 acres and 19 gunthas was the “protected monument”, then under Rule 8(c), these 107 families, admittedly residing within the area of 333 acres 19 gunthas, would not be allowed either to cook or consume food. This would effectively mean that these 107 families would either have to starve or go outside their homes (beyond 333 acres 19 gunthas) and cook and consume their food. This interpretation would be absurd to say the least”, the court said.

The court highlighted that the authorities had allowed such activities for 24 years since the 1999 notification declaring Vishalgad a protected monument, without any issues until the recent communications in February 2023.

Considering these factors, the court granted interim relief for the festival of Bakri Eid and the subsequent Urus festival until June 21, 2024. The court stipulated that the slaughtering must occur within closed premises on private land at Gat No. 19, ensuring it does not take place in open or public areas. The court accepted the assurance given in this regard by the petitioners' counsels as an undertaking to the court.

The court clarified that this interim relief is solely to address the ban imposed by the impugned communications and does not exempt the petitioners from obtaining any other necessary permissions under different laws.

The court scheduled the matter for a final hearing on July 11, 2024, and clarified that its observations in this interim order are prima facie and will not influence the final decision.

Advocates SB Talekar and Madhuri Ayyappan represented the Petitioner Hajrat Peer Malik Rehan Mira Saheb Dargah, Vishalgad.

Advocates Vaibhav Ugle and Roshan Chavan represented Petitioner Manoj K Bhosale.

Case no. – Writ Petition No. 7121 of 2023

Case Title – Hajrat Peer Malik Rehan Mira Saheb Dargah, Vishalgad v. State of Maharashtra & Ors.

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