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TMI Blog1994 (11) TMI 435X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ent 1 before the High Court had wrongly invoked Section 12 of the Act when it exempted from the operation of the Act, the slaughter of healthy cows on the occasion of BakrI'd on the ground that such exemption was required to be given for the religious purpose of Muslim community. The Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court after hearing the contesting parties took the view that such slaughter of cows by members of Muslim community on BakrI'd day was not a requirement of Muslim religion and, therefore, such exemption was outside the scope of Section 12 of the Act. Consequently, the impugned order was dehors the statute. In that view the Division Bench allowed the petition and issued a mandamus to the appellants, State of West Bengal Respondent 1 and its delegate officers Respondents 2 to 16 in the writ petition calling upon them to forbear from giving any exemption under Section 12 of the Act in respect of slaughter of cows on the occasion of BakrI'd day thereinafter. The writ petitioner's oral application for leave under Article 133 of the Constitution was refused as according to the Division Bench it had followed the Constitution Bench decision of this Court in M ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of agriculture. Under Section 4 of the Act only animals fit for slaughtering can be slaughtered. For that a certificate is required to be issued by the authorities concerned. But so far as healthy animals like cows are concerned there is a complete ban on slaughtering them. Section 12 seeks to lift the ban in connection with such animals only on the fulfilment of the condition precedent, namely, such lifting of the ban being necessary for any religious, medicinal or research purpose. As this is an exception to the general protection against slaughtering of healthy animals as envisaged by the Act, such exemption or exception should be strictly construed and cannot be lightly granted or lightly resorted to for any optional religious purpose which may not be absolutely necessary. In this connection it was submitted by learned counsel for the respondents that as per the appellants, in order to earn religious merit a Muslim can offer sacrifice of a goat or alternatively of a healthy cow if 7 Muslims together decided to do so and spend for it or even a camel can be sacrificed by them on BakrI'd. Therefore, it is not essential for Muslims to earn religious merit by insisting on sacri ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rities concerned that the animal is over 14 years of age and is unfit for work or breeding or that the animal has become permanently incapacitated from work or breeding due to age, injury, deformity or any incurable disease. Sub- section (3) deals with a case where there is a difference of opinion between the authorities concerned from which initially a certificate is to be obtained. As per Section 5 even if there is a certificate enabling a person to get the animal concerned slaughtered he cannot slaughter it in any place other than the place prescribed in that behalf. As per Section 7 whoever contravenes the provision of the Act shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or with both. Section 8 makes the offences cognizable under the Act. Section 9 prescribes punishment for abetment of offences or even attempts to commit any such offence under the Act. 8. The aforesaid relevant provisions clearly indicate the legislative intention that healthy cows which are not fit to be slaughtered cannot be slaughtered at all. That is the thrust of Section 4 of the Act. In other words there is total ban ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on with slaughter of such animals on certain conditions. For lifting the ban it should be shown that it is essential or necessary for a Muslim to sacrifice a healthy cow on BakrI'd day and if such is the requirement of religious purpose then it may enable the State in its wisdom to lift the ban at least on BakrI'd day. But that is not the position. It is well settled that an exceptional provision which seeks to avoid the operation of main thrust of the Act has to be strictly construed. In this connection it is profitable to refer to the decisions of this Court in the cases Union of India v. Wood Paper Ltd. (1990) 4 SCC 256: 1990 SCC (Tax) 422: JT (1991) 1 SC 151) and Novopan India Ltd. v. C.C.E. & Customs (1994 Supp (3) SCC 606: JT (1994) 6 SC 80). If any optional religious purpose enabling the Muslim to sacrifice a healthy cow on BakrI'd is made the subject-matter of an exemption under Section 12 of the Act then such exemption would get granted for a purpose which is not an essential one and to that extent the exemption would be treated to have been lightly or cursorily granted. Such is not the scope and ambit of Section 12. We must, therefore, hold that before the Sta ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed cow slaughter. In the light of this historical background it was held that total ban on cow slaughter did not offend Article 25(1) of the Constitution. 9. In view of this settled legal position it becomes obvious that if there is no fundamental right of a Muslim to insist on slaughter of healthy cow on BakrI'd day, it cannot be a valid ground for exemption by the State under Section 12 which would in turn enable slaughtering of such cows on BakrI'd. The contention of learned counsel for the appellants that Article 25(1) of the Constitution deals with essential religious practices while Section 12 of the Act may cover even optional religious practices is not acceptable. No such meaning can be assigned to such an exemption clause which seeks to whittle down and dilute the main provision of the Act, namely, Section 4 which is the very heart of the Act. If the appellants' contention is accepted then the State can exempt from the operation of the Act, the slaughter of healthy cows even for non-essential religious, medicinal or research purpose, as we have to give the same meaning to the three purposes, namely, religious, medicinal or research purpose, as envisaged by Sec ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n of validity of certain enactments, scope of Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution was spelt out and nothing has been held in these decisions which is contrary to what was decided in Quareshi case1, which we have noted in detail. The effort made by teamed counsel for the appellants to get any and every religious practice covered by Section 12 also is of no avail for the simple reason that in the context of Section 12 the religious practice must be such which requires the invocation of exemption provision under Section 12 so as to bypass the main thrust of Section 4. For such an exercise non-essential religious practices cannot be made the basis. Reliance placed on the decision of this Court in Hazarat Pirmahomed Shah Saheb Roza Committee v. C.LT (1967) 63 ITR 490 (SC) also is of no assistance as the same refers to Section 11 of the Income Tax Act, the scheme of which is entirely different from that of the Act. Even if we agree with learned counsel for the appellants that slaughter of a healthy cow on BakrI'd is for a religious purpose, so long as it is not shown to be an essential religious purpose as discussed by us earlier, Section 12 of the Act cannot be pressed in service ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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