A view of the Madras High Court.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
The Tamil Nadu police department on Friday (May 29, 2026) filed a compliance report before the Madras High Court with respect to a direction issued by it on Wednesday (May 27, 2026) to ensure that no cow/calf gets slaughtered in the State either on Thursday, in view of Bakrid, or on any other day.In the report submitted before Justices G.R. Swaminathan and V. Lakshminarayanan, Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) T.S. Anbu said, he had forthwiths issued a circular regarding the court order to all Commissioners, Inspectors General, Deputy Inspectors General and Superintendents of Police.The circular had instructed the Commissioners and Superintendents of Police across Tamil Nadu to ensure that the field level officers do not permit “slaughter of any animal in a place other than a designated slaughter house and no cows or calves are slaughtered on the eve of Bakrid or any other day.”Further, listing out the steps taken by the police department to implement the court orders, the ADGP said, special squads and local Inspectors of Police were deployed at various places in the State to conduct regular patrols and prevent any sort of illegal slaughter, specifically in public places and unapproved areas.“All the unit officers have been instructed to coordinate closely with the Collectors, Municipal Commissioners and local civic bodies to ensure that animal sacrifices or slaughter is carried out strictly in the designated and licensed slaughter houses with proper veterinary certifications,” the ADGP’s report read.He also said: “Police personnel have been stationed at vulnerable and sensitive localities to ensure strict compliance with the constitutional and legal frameworks governing cattle preservation in Tamil Nadu... Special Branch staff and city intelligence police have been activated to monitor the situation continously.”After being satisfied with the compliance report in which it had been made clear that the State police machinery remained committed to implement the statutory provisions and the directions issued by the court on Wednesday, the Division Bench said, no further orders were necessary in the matter.The court had directed the State government and the police department to impose a ban on cow slaughter in the State with immediate effect while allowing a public interest litigation petition filed by filed by K. Surya alias K. Surya Prasanth (29), the youth wing secretary of Indu Makkal Katchi.The petitioner had complained about temporary sheds having been put up in many public places in Coimbatore to slaughter cows during Bakrid. In their verdict, the judges highlighted that a Government Order issued on August 30, 1976 had imposed a ban on cow slaughter in the State.Further, citing several Supreme Court decisions on the issue and also taking into consideration, the 1976 G.O., the judges wrote: “Since the executive power is co-terminus with the legislative power, a Government Order... banning cow slaughter is very much sustainable and has to be enforced, as it has the force of law.”They ordered that cow/calf slaughter should not be permitted on Bakrid or any other day and that slaughtering of other animals too be should be strictly confined to licensed slaughter houses. After directing the Chief Secretary and the ADGP (L&O) to implement the order, the judges had called for a compliance report too. Published - May 29, 2026 07:23 pm IST
