Bombay High Court clarified it never ordered the closure of Kabutarkhanas, only upheld BMC’s move. The Court stressed, “Human life is of paramount importance” amid health concerns from pigeon feeding.
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court recently made it clear that it had not ordered the closure of Kabutarkhanas (places where people feed pigeons) in Mumbai. The Court said that it had only refused to stop the action taken by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which had itself decided to close the Kabutarkhanas.
A bench of Justices G S Kulkarni and Arif Doctor said,
“It was the BMC’s (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) decision (to close Kabutarkhanas) which was challenged before us. We did not pass any order. We only did not grant any interim relief.”
The clarification came after protests broke out in the city earlier this week, when the Kabutarkhanas were covered with sheets. These protests began after some reports claimed that the High Court had ordered the closure of these feeding spots.
Even Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had reportedly said that the High Court had passed such an order. But the Court firmly stated that this was not true.
The judges also made it very clear that the Court is mainly concerned with the health and safety of the public. They said that if something harms people’s health—especially senior citizens and children—then it should be seriously looked into.
The bench stated,
“If something affects the larger health of senior citizens and kids, then it should be looked into. There has to be a balance,”
The judges also pointed out that thousands of people live in the areas where these Kabutarkhanas exist, and their health cannot be compromised.
“We are only concerned about public health. These are public places where thousands of people are residing….There has to be a balance. There are few who want to feed (pigeons). It is for the government to now take a decision. There is nothing adversarial in this.”
In its observations, the Court said it may consider asking the Maharashtra government to appoint a committee of experts to study whether these Kabutarkhanas should continue or not.
It said that it is not the Court’s job to decide on medical matters and a scientific study is needed to properly understand the impact of pigeon feeding on public health.
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The Court stressed,
“All medical reports point at irreversible damage caused by pigeons. Human life is of paramount importance,”
The judges also added that the matter is not adversarial or about favouring one group over another. The goal is to ensure that the rights of all citizens are protected—not just the rights of a few people who want to feed pigeons.
“It is for the government and BMC to take an informed decision to ensure that the constitutional rights of every citizen are upheld and not just those of a few interested individuals.”
The High Court further said that any decision should be taken only after examining the available medical evidence. It made it clear that such decisions should be guided by expert opinion.
“The court was not an expert to decide the issue, and hence a scientific study needs to be conducted before any decision is taken.”
The Court stated that there is a large amount of medical information available on the subject, and it must be reviewed by people who have the knowledge to understand it.
“There is a wealth of medical material that needs to be looked into and the court is not an expert to examine the same, it said, adding that an expert committee can decide if the BMC’s decision was right.”
The High Court said that the state government, which is responsible for the health and well-being of the public, should think about setting up an expert committee.
“Hence, in our opinion, the state can consider appointing a committee as it is the guardian and custodian of public health and of the citizens.”
The Court also said that if the expert committee agrees with the BMC’s decision to close the Kabutarkhanas, then the government can consider building a proper and safe alternative place for the birds.
The Court stated,
“If the committee opines that the BMC’s decision was right, then a suitable alternative for the birds can be looked into,”
The High Court was hearing several petitions filed by citizens who feed pigeons and were unhappy with the BMC’s decision to shut down the Kabutarkhanas.
While refusing to give any interim relief to these petitioners earlier, the Court had also asked the authorities not to demolish any heritage Kabutarkhanas.
The matter has now been posted for further hearing on August 13, and the Court has asked the Advocate General of Maharashtra to be present so that an order to set up an expert committee can be passed.
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