TMI Blog1986 (4) TMI 330X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eri JUDGMENT The Judgment of the Court was delivered by R.B. MISRA, J. Slaughter of cows and calves has been a sensitive issue and it has generated violent sentimental differences time and again between different sections of the people of this country. Part IV of the Constitution of India enshrines what are called the Directive Principles of State Policy. These Directive Principles are not enforceable in a court of law but are nevertheless fundamental in the governance of the country and are to be applied by States in making laws. Article 48 contained in Part IV provides : "48. The State shall endeavour to organise agriculture and animal husbandry in modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter, of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle." It appears that pursuant to Article 48 of the Constitution several States enacted laws for the preservation and prohibition of the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle. The State of Bihar enacted the Bihar Preservation and Improvement of Animals Act, 1955 the U.P. State enacted the Uttar Pradesh Preventio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India. Article 13(2) provides that the State shall not make any law which takes away or abridges the rights conferred by this Part and any law made in contravention of this clause shall, to the extent of the contravention, be void. Dealing with Fundamental Rights as given in Part III and the Directive Principles as detailed in Part IV of the Constitution, the Constitution Bench in Minerva Mills Ltd. Ors. v. Union of India Ors., [1981] 1 S.C.R. 206, 257, observed as follows : "The significance of the perception that Parts III and IV together constitute the core of commitment to social revolution and they, together, are the conscience of the Constitution is to be traced to a deep understanding of the scheme of the Indian Constitution. Granville Austin s observation brings out the true position that Parts III and IV are like two wheels of a chariot, one no less important than the other. You snap one and the other will lose its efficacy. They are like a twin formula for achieving the social revolution, which is the ideal which the visionary founders of the Constitution set before themselv ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ent of the basic structure of our Constitution." Attempts were, however, made from time to time to circumvent the judgment of this Court in Mohd. Hanif Quareshi s case (supra). After the judgment in that case the legislatures of the State of Bihar and U.P. passed Amendment Acts prescribing minimum age of animals to be slaughtered. The Bihar Act prohibited slaughter of a bull, bullock or shebuffalo unless the animal was of 25 years of age and was useless. Under the U.P. Act slaughter of a bull or buffalo was permitted only if it was over 20 years of age and was permanently unfit. The Madhya Pradesh Legislature passed a new Act, the M.P. Agricultural Cattle Preservation Act, 1959 under which slaughter of a bull, bullock or buffalo except on a certificate issued by the competent authority was prohibited. A certificate could not be issued unless the animal was of over 20 years age and was unfit for work or breeding. These Acts were again challenged in Abdul Hakim Quraeshi Ors. v. State of Bihar Ors., [1961] 2 S.C.R. 610. This Court took the view that the ban on the slaughter of bulls, bullocks and she-buffaloes below the age of 20 or 25 years was not a reasonable restriction in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ting the closure of slaughter houses on seven days named in the standing orders being violative of Arts. 14 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution inasmuch as the closure of the slaughter house adversely effected his trade as animals could not be admitted in the slaughter house on those seven days specified in the standing orders and therefore he could not get the meat of those animals for his beef shop. It appears that at the time of the presentation of the writ petition the amended standing order adding three more days to the list of holidays in the slaughter house had not seen the light of the day. The Municipal Corporation of Ahmedabad had, however, passed a resolution on 18th January, 1965 whereby three more days were added to the list of holidays for the slaughter house. The petitioner took up a plea that the power to keep the municipal slaughter house closed on any particular day in an area vested in the Municipal Commissioner and such a power could only be exercised by a standing order properly issued and promulgated by the Municipal Commissioner. Under the earlier standing order on 1956 made by the Municipal Commissioner municipal slaughter houses could be kept open for use on ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y was also prohibited. Under the notification by which the bye-laws were issued in 1948 bulls and bullocks could be slaughtered in the premises fixed for the purpose but by the notification dated 12th January, 1967 the confirmation of bye-laws in so far as they related to bulls and bullocks was cancelled. The effect of that notification was to prohibit the slaughter of bulls and bullocks within the Municipality of Jabalpur. This cancellation of the confirmation of byelaws, it was urged, imposed a direct restriction upon the fundamental right of the petitioner under Art. 19(1)(g) of the Constitution. This Court laid down : "The impugned notification, though technically within the competence of the State Government, directly infringes the fundamental right of the petitioner guaranteed by Art. 19(1)(g), and may be upheld only if it be established that it seeks to impose reasonable restrictions in the interests of the general public and a less drastic restrictions will not ensure the interest of the general public." This Court further observed : "The sentiments of a section of the people may be hurt by permitting slaughter of bulls and bullocks in premises maintained by a local a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... put on the fundamental right of the respondents to carry on their trade or business in beef was a reasonable one. The Court must in considering the validity of the impugned law imposing prohibition on the carrying on of a business or a profession attempt an evaluation of its direct and immediate impact upon the fundamental rights of the citizens affected thereby and the larger public interest sought to be ensured in the light of the object sought to be achieved, the necessity to restrict the citizen s freedom, the inherent pernicious nature of the act prohibited or its capacity or tendency to be harmful to the general public, the possibility of achieving the object by imposing a less drastic restraint, and in the absence of exceptional situations such as the prevalence of a state of emergency, national or local, or the necessity to maintain necessary supplies or the necessity to stop activities inherently dangerous, the existence of a machinery to satisfy the administrative authority that a case for imposing restriction is made out or a less drastic restriction may ensure the object intended to be achieved. In the light of the aforesaid principles the question for consideration i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... l pattern of reasonableness can be laid down as applicable to all cases. The nature of the right alleged to have been infringed, the underlying purpose of the restrictions imposed, the extent and urgency of the evil sought to be remedied thereby, the disproportion of the imposition, the prevailing conditions at the time, should all enter into the judicial verdict." In the instant case it was open to the Municipal Commissioner to fix days and hours at and during which any slaughter house should be kept open for use. If the Municipal Commissioner declares certain days as holidays for the slaughter house in order to give facilities to the municipal staff working in the municipal slaughter house, no body could have any objection to such a standing order. The grievance of the petitioner-respondent in the instant case is on the ground that the Municipal Commissioner by standing orders had declared days concerning Mahatma Gandhi, Lord Mahavir, Sri Ram and Lord Krishna as holidays. Mahatma Gandhi and Lord Mahavir were apostles of non-violence who lived and died for that cause. Mahatma Gandhi, venerated by the People of India as the Father of the Nation was an apostle of non-violence. Mah ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... egislature. In the construction of such laws and in judging their validity, courts must approach the problem from the point of view of furthering the social interest which it is the purpose of the legislation to promote. They are not in these matters functioning in vacuo but as part of society which is trying, by the enacted law, to solve its problems and furthering the moral and material progress of the community as a whole. (See Joti Prasad v. Union Territory of Delhi, [1961] S.C.R. 1601) If the expression in the interest of general public is of wide import comprising public order, public security and public morals, it cannot be said that the standing orders closing the slaughter houses on seven days is not in the interest of general public. In view of the aforesaid discussion we are not prepared to hold that the closure of slaughter house on seven days specified in the two standing orders in any way put an unreasonable restriction on the fundamental right guaranteed to the petitioner-respondent under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution. This leads us to the second contention raised on behalf of the respondent, which is based on Art. 14 of the Constitution. The High Court ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y no utility as draught animals. These different categories of animals being susceptible of classification into separate groups on the basis of their usefulness to society, the butchers who kill each category of animals may also be placed in distinct classes according to the effect produced on society by the carrying on of their respective occupations. The butchers who slaughter cattle formed the well defined class based on their occupation. That classification is based on intelligible differentia and distinguishes them from those who kill goats and sheep and this differentiation has a close connection with the object sought to be achieved by the impugned Act, namely the preservation, protection and the improvement of our livestock. The attainment of these objectives may well necessitate that the slaughterers of cattle should be dealt with differently than the slaughterers of say, goats and sheep. The standing orders, therefore, in our view, adopt a classification based on sound and intelligible basis and can quite clearly stand the test laid down above. For the foregoing discussion, the appeal must succeed. It is accordingly allowed. The judgment and order of the High Court date ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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