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The Kerala government and the State High Court have taken apparently contrarian positions on the issue of rules regulating cattle trade, recently promulgated by the Centre.
On Wednesday, a Division Bench of the High Court observed in a related case that the contentious Central order did not ban slaughter of cattle, but it only prohibited the sale of cattle for slaughter. The order did not stop one from selling cattle outside of the market. If only people chose to read the rules, there would not be cause for tension, the Bench said.
In view of these observations, counsel for the petitioner, a general secretary of the Youth Congress, withdrew the petition.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the State government would move court against the Central notification. A special meeting of the State Cabinet would, on Thursday, discuss the matter, he added.
Vijayan had earlier written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in detail, conveying what he described as concerns of the Kerala government and the State’s people over the notification.
The government is learnt to be exploring legal opinion to chart its next course in the matter. The Chief Minister said the Centre’s move was against the principles of federalism, and it would be fought with all force at the State’s command.
Assuming leadership? Vijayan was the first Chief Minister to come up with sharp criticism against the order on cattle slaughter soon after it was notified, inviting national attention in the process.
Observers say Vijayan is keen to retain the early advantage he managed to establish, and line up like-minded State governments on a single platform.
The State unit of the BJP has been keeping a low-profile, mindful of the backlash that any overzealous assertion of its core ideology can elicit in the largely meat-consuming State.
State president Kummanam Rajasekharan did not return a call seeking comments. He had earlier said that the new order did not prevent any one from rearing cattle for meat nor from eating beef.
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