Bhopal: Religious organisations protest against opening of slaughterhouse

Various religious organisations on Thursday staged a protest against opening of state's largest slaughter house in Bhopal's Chhawani Adampur.

On July 11, the Supreme Court heared the plea challenging the Centre's notification that bans sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter.

In the last hearing, the Apex Court had issued a notice to the central government on hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by a Hyderabad based Non-Government Organisation (NGO).

The Apex court's vacation bench, headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and comprising Justice R.K. Agarwal, issued notice to the government seeking reply by July 11.

The NGO had moved the Apex Court, challenging the Centre's notification that bans sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter, a move that received flak since its announcement.

The petition was filed by a Hyderabad-based lawyer Fahim Qureshi, stating that the order was discriminatory and unconstitutional, as it prevented cattle traders from earning their livelihood.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in June said he would call for a meeting of all the chief ministers, asserting that the Union Government does not have the right to issue such an order on cattle slaughter ban.

On June 1, the students of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT- Madras) staged protest against the same.

-ANI