Sunday, 03 April | PNS | Dehradun
In blatant violation of the law and court orders, slaughter and sale of non-vegetarian products is thriving in the pilgrimage centre of Rishikesh. This was stated in a legal notice served to the Food Safety commissioner Pankaj Pandey and Rishikesh municipal commissioner Girish Chandra Gunwant regarding the willful disobedience and contempt of the judgment of the Supreme Court and law of the land by allowing illegal rampant slaughter and sale of non-vegetarian products in Rishikesh, Haridwar and Muni Ki Reti. The notice has been served by advocate Esha Dutta on behalf of animal rights activist Rubina Nitin Iyer.
The advocate states that the notice concerns the registration certificate/licenses granted to meat shops to undertake slaughter of small animals and poultry birds within Rishikesh, Haridwar and Muni Ki Reti, in utter non-compliance, disobedience and contempt of the judgment of the Supreme Court and High Court of Uttarakhand and law of the land.
According to Iyer, the Department of Food Safety has issued several registration certificates to meat shops/ slaughtering units to undertake slaughter within Rishikesh. Such action is erroneous and in direct contravention to the directions of the Uttarakhand High Court as well as Supreme Court, the notice states.
The notice further points out that it is a matter of record that the Uttarakhand High Court has been pleased to uphold the complete restriction on dealings in non-vegetarian products in the interest of the general public in Rishikesh, Haridwar and Muni Ki Reti. It is further a matter of record that the Supreme Court also upheld the findings of the High Court order.
According to Iyer in the municipal limits of Rishikesh, Haridwar, Muni Ki Reti, the public dealing in meat, fish and eggs had been explicitly banned vide various notifications. However, the municipal commissioner has failed to restrict trade/ dealings in non-vegetarian products under his jurisdiction despite the mandate of the courts and the issuance of various notifications. Meat shop licenses were issued to 14 shops in 2020 and 2021 without the NOC of the Municipal Corporation of Rishikesh. Furthermore, the total number of active licenses/ registered meat shops are 35, operative and conducting trade in Rishikesh apart from those who have slaughtering licenses, as revealed through a response to an RTI application, received from the Food Safety field officer. Despite the strict mandate of the Supreme Court, the issuance of registration certificates and licenses to individuals/meat shops to undertake slaughter in Rishikesh and Muni Ki Reti is deeply disturbing and amounts to willful disobedience and contempt of the Supreme Court and Uttarakhand High Court orders, states the legal notice. The advocate has asked the noticees to comply with the court orders and recall any registration certificate or licences issued in the said areas. They have also been asked to take punitive actions against all individuals/meat shops/ entities/ food business dealing in trade of non-vegetarian food items, to fulfil the mandate of the courts. The notice states that if the officials fail to do the needful, the activist will initiate necessary proceedings under the law.
