U'khand HC steps in to check cruelty to horses, mules on Chardham route
orders blacklisting of violaters
Nainital, Aug 13: The Uttarakhand High Court has asked the state government to blacklist equine handlers and owners on the Chardham Yatra route who inflict cruelty on animals, saying merely fining them is not enough, and has issued a slew of directions for the welfare of these animals.
Setting up barricades to allow only registered operators, allowing animals to rest at night and providing them warm water and health check-ups before the start of journey are among the steps ordered by the high court on a PIL that alleged that horse and mule operators on the Yatra route often subject them to cruel treatment like forcing them to overwork or carry more burden than their bearing capacity for commercial gain.
"We are of the view that mere fining of the handlers or filing cases against them for inflicting cruelty to animals, is not sufficient to rein in and discipline the erring handlers/owners of equines," a bench of Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Rakesh Thapliyal said in its recent order.
The fines are nominal and criminal cases take years to get decided, the judges said.
There is no fear among erring equine handlers/owners of suffering any consequences if they do not mend their conduct and continue to subject them to cruelty for commercial gain, they said.
"The only effective way in which cruelty to the equines can be curbed is by blacklisting such handlers/owners who are found to be subjecting their equines to cruelty and maltreatment," the high court said.
The petition had been filed by animal rights activist Gauri Maulekhi and social worker Ajay Gautam.
The PIL said 600 horses have died during the Char Dham Yatra, posing a risk of disease spread in the region. They requested medical facilities and safety for animals and humans.
The petition also raised concerns about the increasing crowds during the pilgrimage, causing problems of food and accommodation for both animals and people.
The court directed that mules will not be put to work at night. The equines will be made to carry loads in accordance with their load-bearing capacity and every mule will work for a single shift in one day.
Health check-ups of the equines will be conducted before the start of the journey, and provisions for warm water, accommodation, and veterinary staff will be arranged.
The government side agreed to these directions.
The court suggested that only licensed mules operate in the area and the rest be denied entry.
Secretary of animal husbandry department BVRC Purushottam submitted that 5000 mules are licensed to operate in the area.
However, the petitioners contended that unofficially many more operate.
The high court ordered that barricades and checkpoints should be put up on the Yatra route and only registered equines and handlers are permitted to cross it.
The purpose of registration of equines and handlers would lose its significance and purpose if even unregistered equines and handlers are able to pass the barrier unchecked, the high court said.
Such infiltration would also completely derail the Yatra, it said.
"A total of 215 financial penalties have been imposed against equine owners and 17 FIRs have been registered for cruelty to animals this year till 28th July 2023, " the secretary informed the court.
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Karnataka Assembly passes bill on Palace Grounds amid opposition protest
Bengaluru, Mar 6 (PTI): The Karnataka Assembly on Thursday passed the Bangalore Palace (Utilisation and Regulation of Land) Bill, reaffirming state ownership over 472 acres and 16 guntas of land here, amid protests by the opposition BJP.
During the discussion, Karnataka Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil said the state government would have to provide Rs 200 crore worth of Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) for each acre of land, which means that for 15 acres, Rs 3,000 crore worth of TDR would be issued.
“If we accept it, then this 2-km stretch of road will become the costliest road in the world. If we accept it then how are we going to develop the city in later stages? How will you carry out development works?” asked Patil.
He also pointed out that this question was raised not only under the Congress government but also during the previous BJP regime.
However, the BJP-led cabinet has opposed the project.
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“Suppose we agree to it then, what will be the valuation of the 472 acres? It will be lakhs and lakhs of crores of rupees. Can we accept?” Patil wondered.
The Minister said the government had previously exercised its executive powers to issue an ordinance, which was approved by the Governor. Now the government is bringing a bill with two amendments.
“In this bill, we have made provisions either to develop or drop the road development work,” Patil explained.
However, BJP state president B Y Vijayendra and BJP MLA Arvind Bellad opposed the move, alleging that the government was targetting Yaduveer Krishna Datta Chamaraja Wadiyar, the scion of the Mysuru royal family, and the BJP MP from Mysuru-Kodagu constituency out of political vendetta.
“We talk of 472 acres of Mysuru Maharaja but here there are many Maharajas who too own 400 acres, 500 acres and thousands of acres of land, which is known to everyone,” Bellad said.
He slammed the Congress government, saying political power should not be misused for personal vendetta.
“Why (the then Deputy Chief Minister) Siddaramaiah brought the law in 1996 pertaining to the Bangalore Palace? Why are you setting eyes on the Bangalore Palace?” he asked.
Vijayendra charged that Wadiyar won the election on BJP ticket so the state government realised that it should acquire it.
“This bill has been brought for political vengeance. We are not discussing whether Rs 3,000 crore is exorbitant or not but the moment Yaduveer became MP, the state government woke up. You should be ashamed. This house should not be used for political vendetta,” he said.
Intervening, Minister Priyank Kharge said Vijayendra should not have raised it because the intention behind building the road was noble.
According to him, the BJP too had the same plan when it was in power.
He sought to know whether thousands of crores of rupees be spent on a road which should have cost significantly less.
In response, BJP MLA B A Basavaraj (Byrathi) said issuing TDR will not be a burden on the state government and appealed to the ruling Congress to reconsider its stance.
Minister Ramalinga Reddy too explained that the Karnataka government acquired the entire land way back in 1996.
The Mysuru royal family went to the High Court, which gave ruling in favour of the state government. The royal family then approached the Supreme Court, where the case is still going on, the Minister pointed out.
“The final judgment is pending in the SC to decide whether the acquisition was right or wrong. If the SC says it’s the royal family’s property then let it be so. If the order is in the state government’s favour then we can take a decision. The bill is only about it,” Reddy explained.
Speaker U T Khader then called for a voice vote and the bill was passed by the Assembly amidst opposition BJP’s discontent.
