HC directs Shivajinagar police to shift illegally kept cattle to shelters

Bengaluru: The High Court of Karnataka on Friday directed Shivajinagar police in the city to shift cattle, which are allegedly kept illegally and in inhuman conditions by two individuals in a locality in their jurisdiction, to cattle shelters with the help of members of Gau Gyan Foundation, an NGO.

The High Court has appointed two advocates, Chandranath Ariga and Akshatha, as court commissioners to supervise the actions of the police and members of the petitioner-foundation to identify cattle kept in inhuman conditions and shift them to cattle shelters.

The High Court directed the police to provide protection to the court commissioners and the members of the foundation.The court also made it clear that the foundation had to bear the risk and cost of shifting cattle to the shelter.

Justice Aravind Kumar passed the interim order on the petition filed by the foundation complaining that the Shivajinagar police failed adhere to a direction, given by an Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court on August 30, to investigate the complaint of the foundation, and rescue cows, calves, she buffaloes, bulls, and oxen if they were found kept illegally and in inhuman conditions.

The foundation had approached the magistrate’s court after the city police did not initiate action on its complaint that two persons, Mohammed Ejaz Qureshi and Syed Akram, had kept the cattle for slaughter purpose in violation of the provisions of the Karnataka Prevention of Cow Slaughter and Cattle Preservation Act, 1964, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and the Indian Penal Code.