The Allahabad High Court on Monday put in abeyance its direction asking for the removal of stray dogs from Allahabad city.
The Court was hearing an intervention application filed by the former Union Minister and BJP MP Maneka Sanjay Gandhi seeking recall of the court’s order.
Maneka Gandhi brought to the notice of the High Court the decision of the Supreme Court dated November 18, 2015, in Animal Welfare Board of India vs. People For Elimination Of Stray Troubles in which the top court had directed all High Courts not to pass any order relating to ‘The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960’ and the ‘Animal Birth Control Rules, 2001′ pertaining to dogs.
Ms. Gandhi, thus, argued that the matter relating to the Act of 1960 and Animal Birth Control Rules, 2001, pertaining to dogs was already sub-judice before the Apex Court and therefore, the directions issued by the High Court could be in conflict with the observations made.
Also Read: Allahabad HC directs removal of stray cattle and dogs from city precincts
A division bench of Justices Siddhartha Varma and Ajit Kumar, therefore, observed that propriety demanded that their order relating to the removal of stray dogs from the city area be put in abeyance.
The bench then went on to direct that its direction relating to stray dogs remain in abeyance. It also directed the Nagar Nigam to file a proper reply to the intervention application within a period of ten days.
The Allahabad High Court on August 28 directed the removal of stray cattle and stray dogs from Allahabad on the grounds that stray cattle were a major cause for accidents while rabies was rampant among stray dogs in the city.
“In this time of pandemic when people are worried about their safety stray cattle and stray dogs must compulsorily be removed to avoid any nuisance”, the Court had said.
The court was hearing a batch of applications pertaining to the strict enforcement of guidelines to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.
Prominent animal rights activist Gauri Maulekhi took to Twitter to express her displeasure at the Court’s directive. She said, “The Hon’ble High Court seems to have been mistaken or insufficiently apprised of the laws related to street animals and directions of the Hon’ble SC”.
Read the Order
http://theleaflet.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Allahabad-High-Court_August-31_Stary-Dogs-matter.pdf
