The Bombay High Court criticized the Maharashtra government for misinterpreting its order allowing animal slaughter at Vishalgad Fort during Bakri Eid and Urs. The court expressed concern that the misinterpretation could foster disharmony and unrest.
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MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday(18th June), expressed strong disapproval towards the Maharashtra government for “misinterpreting” its order that permitted the slaughtering of animals and birds at Vishalgad Fort in Kolhapur district during the celebration of Bakri Eid and Urs.
The court stated-
“Our order has been misinterpreted. This does not align with our directive and may wrongly suggest an intent to sow discord and unrest.”
These remarks were directed at the government pleaders who were present in the courtroom.
Last week, a bench comprising Justices BP Colabawalla and Firdosh Pooniwalla issued an interim order overturning a directive from the Director of Archaeology and Museums, Mumbai, the Superintendent of Police, Kolhapur, and the Chief Executive Officer of the Zilla Parishad, Kolhapur.
This directive had initially banned the slaughtering of animals and birds at Vishalgad Fort. However, despite the court’s interim order, the anticipated slaughtering did not occur, reportedly due to the presence of heavy police deployment, as per the villagers’ accounts.
The Vishalgad Fort, known for housing a dargah, became a focal point of legal contention when the trustees, along with several private individuals, approached the court after authorities announced that sacrifices would not be allowed this year.
Although the High Court had granted permission for sacrifices, the authorities’ refusal to permit the villagers to slaughter animals raised significant concerns, especially considering that this tradition is claimed to be over 900 years old.
Advocate Satish Talekar, representing the petitioners, urgently sought a hearing. He emphasized the cultural and religious significance of the sacrifices, noting that after Bakri Eid, a Urs is scheduled to take place until June 21, which traditionally includes animal sacrifices. He highlighted the villagers’ distress over being unable to perform their longstanding rituals due to the authorities’ stance despite the court’s clear directive.
The judiciary scrutinized the actions of local authorities who allegedly misinterpreted a high court order regarding animal sacrifices during Bakri Eid and Urs at a dargah. Advocate Talekar argued that the authorities claimed the high court’s directive only allowed dargah trustees and a few private individuals, who had approached the court as petitioners, to carry out the sacrifices. As a mark of protest, these individuals refrained from performing the ritual, according to Talekar.
He further accused the authorities of obstructing the sacrifices at the behest of certain right-wing organizations. The court, after critically evaluating the state government’s stance, reminded them of the clear instructions provided in the previous detailed hearing.
“We formed an opinion and granted permission for the petitioners to conduct animal slaughter during Bakri Eid and Urs. We explicitly specified that the sacrifices should occur solely in private locations.”
-the bench emphasized.
The court acknowledged that the matter was brought to their urgent attention by one of the petitioners, highlighting that the authorities had only permitted the dargah trustees and another petitioner to carry out the sacrifices. The bench expressed concern over this interpretation.
“We are concerned that this interpretation of our order is incorrect.”
– the court declared.
The bench noted that such an interpretation by the authorities would contradict the court’s observations in the order. They stressed that the permission for sacrifices did not exclusively apply to the petitioners but extended to all devotees wishing to offer animal and bird sacrifices at the dargah until June 21.
“Such an interpretation by the authorities contradicts the observations made in the order. It applies not only to the petitioners but to all devotees who come to offer sacrifices of animals and birds at the dargah until June 21.”
-the court observed.
The judiciary hoped that the authorities would not misinterpret the order and would adhere to the directive in both letter and spirit.
“We hope that the authorities will not misinterpret the directive and will adhere to it both in letter and spirit.”
– the court added.
