SC order on cattle trade, a respite

The Supreme Court’s order extending the Mad-ras High Court’s stay on the NDA government’s notification on cattle trade has given the hope that this unwise decision may be reviewed. The government had issued its absurd order restricting the sale of livestock in cattle markets and their transport “for slaughter purposes” in May. The high court issued an interim stay but there were doubts about its scope. The Supreme Court has now extended the stay for three months and to the entire country. The government indicated to the court that the ministry of environment and forests was considering some changes in the newly issued rules. It is planning to issue a fresh notification after the review is completed. The court’s stay gives the government an opportunity to drop the notification altogether. None of the grounds ci­ted by the government for the notification is tenable and it will have many unhealthy and unsavoury consequences.

Only states have the power to regulate cattle trade and the functioning of cattle markets, and so the Centre had no constitutional right to impose a countrywide ban. This was a violation of the federal principle. The government tried to get around this legal problem by making out that the rules were intended to prevent cruelty to animals. This begged the question why animals like sheep were left out of the purview of the rules which covered cows, bulls, buffaloes and camels. The problems of implementation are immense because each buyer had to certify that the purchase was only for dairy and agricultural purposes. Abattoirs would have to buy cattle directly from farms and farmers who buy them would not be able to resell them for six months. The leather and meat export business would be badly hit and the livelihood of large numbers of people would be affected. These implications were not realised or were ignored at the time of issuance of the notification.

The government might be tempted to exclude buffaloes from the purview of the rules when they are renotified. But the argument about cruelty would collapse then and there would be little justification for the rules as such. Farmers will not be willing to rear cows as they will not be able to sell them after they become old and weak. Apart from causing economic harm, the rules — even if they are toned down — will have the potential to create more social strife and divisiveness. Politics will be further vitiated. It is a faulty and authoritarian order and the government should let good sense prevail in the matter. There are many serious issues for the government to tackle other than the buying and selling of cattle.