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West Pakistan Animals Slaughter Control Act (III of 1963)

Ss. 3 & 4-Provisional Constitution Order (1 of 1981), Art. 9Slaughter of kine and sale of beef-Licence from Deputy Commissioner, held, not required-Restriction on sale and slaughtering by Deputy Commissioner and Veterinary Assistant unlawful and of no legal effect.

Ch. Abdul Nab for Petitioner.

N.A. Bhatti for Respondents.

Date of hearing : 12th March, 1983.

This Constitutional petition has sought to set aside the order dated 22-1-1983 of respondent No. 1 requiring the petitioners to have a licence from the Deputy Commissioner, Bahawalnagar for the sale of beef.

2. The relevant facts of this case in substance are that the petitioners are hereditary butchers by profession and are carrying on their vocation of slaughtering animals and selling beef since the time of their forefathers.. The Veterinary Assistant, Animal Husbandry, Haroonabad, District Bahawalnagar refused to check and pass the beef on the ground that they bad not been licensed to slaughter animals and sell beef by the Deputy Commissioner, Bahawalnagar. According to the petitioners they have been denied their right of freedom of trade as guaranteed by the Constitution and they do not require any licence under law for slaughtering animals and selling beef.

3. The comments of the Deputy Commissioner, Bahawalnagar have been received. He has referred to rules 1 and 2 .of Slaughtering of Kine Rules made under section 43, Punjab Laws Act, 1872 and sections 3 and 4 of West Pakistan Animals Slaughter Control Act, 1963. It has been stated by the Deputy Commissioner, Bahawalnagar that he had directed the Veterinary Assistant, Haroonabad to restrain the illegal butchers from continuing their business.

4. The history of law regarding slaughtering of animals may be traced. Under section 43 of the Punjab Laws, 1872, rules were framed for -the slaughter of kine and it was enacted that the slaughter of kine and the sale of beef shall not take place except subject to Rules to be framed from time to time either generally or in any particular instance, prescribed by the Provincial Government. It is not disputed that under section 43 of the said Act, the Deputy Commissioners were empowered to issue licence for the sale of beef. The West Pakistan Animals Slaughter Control Act, 1963 (Act III of 1963) was enacted in order to prohibit the slaughter of useful animals and to regulate the slaughter of other animals in the Province of West Pakistan and sections 3 and 4 were enacted which are as follows

"3. Restriction on slaughter of animals.-(1) No person shall slaughter a useful animal.

(2) No person shall slaughter an animal,

(a) unless such animal has been approved as hereinafter provided, for slaughter ; and

(b) except in a slaughter house and during the hours prescribed there. for

Provided that nothing contained in this section shall apply to the slaughter of any animal

(i) by a Muslim on the day of Eid-ul-Azha and the two succeeding days ; or

(ii) which on account of illness, injury or other cause is likely to die before it can be presented to the officer-in-charge of slaughter house.

< [if supportLists]>4. Examination in stock yard.-(1) Any person intending to slaughter an animal in a slaughter house shall produce the animal in the stock yard for examination at any time during the hours fixed by the local authority concerned for inspection.

(2) After examination of any such animal the Veterinary Officer may approve it for slaughter

Provided that no useful animal shall be so approved.

(3) Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Veterinary Officer may, within twenty-four hours of such decision, prefer an appeal from such decision, to such authority as may be prescribed.

(4) Subject to the decision of the appellate authority the decision of the Veterinary Officer shall be final."

This Act was further amended by Ordinance VIII of 1970 called the West Pakistan Animals Slaughter Control (Punjab Amendment) Ordinance, 1970. In this Ordinance after subsection (2) of section 3, the following subsection (3) was added

"(3) No person shall, directly or indirectly,

(a) sell, keep, store, transport, offer or expose for sale, or hawk any meat or carcass of any animal which has not been slaughtered in a slaughter house and does riot bear the stamp or mark of the slaughter house prescribed by the local authority in this behalf ; or

(b) sell or cause to be sold any meat at a place other than that set apart or approved for this purpose by the local authority."

Section 12 of Act III of 1963 was substituted and section 43 of the Punjab Laws Act, 1572 was repealed. Subsequently Ordinance VII of 1982 was promulgated in order to further amend the Punjab Animals Slaughter Control Act, 1963. It has just amended the definition of local authority occurring in section 2 of the Act and the words Animal Husbandry Department have been substituted by Live stock Dairy Development Department. The said amendment is not relevant to the point in controversy in this petition.

5. It may be seen that rules under section 43 of the Punjab Laws Act, 1872 empowered the Deputy Commissioner of a District to issue licences to the professional butchers. Since section 43 has been repealed and the business of slaughtering animals has been regulated by the self-contained Act III of 1963, .the learned counsel for the respondents could not lay his hand on any pro-. vision of law which require the licensing of this business by the Deputy Commissioner or any other relevant, authority. It appears that the stringent penal provisions regarding the prosecution of the delinquent butchers have been embodied in Act III of 1963, as amended up-to-date, so the Legislature did not feel the necessity of subjecting this business to a licence. In this manner there is no need of a licence for carrying on the slaughter of kine and the sale of beef. This restriction imposed by the Deputy Commissioner, Bahawalnagar and the Veterinary Assistant, Haroonabad is unlawful and of no legal effect. I, therefore, accept this writ petition and direct the respondents not to place any impediment in the business of the petitioners by calling upon them to have a licence from the Deputy Commissioner. The petitioners may, however, be dealt with under the prevalent law.

I make no order as to costs. The writ petition stands disposed of in these terms.

M. Y. H. Petition disposed accordingly.

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