The nationwide lockdown, imposed to contain the spread of the Novel Coronavirus, has made the supply and procurement of essential commodities difficult. Under strict restrictions on the movment of people, a Kerala pet owner, N. Prakash, who wanted to venture out to buy biscuits for his cats, was denied a vehicle pass by the police.
On Tuesday, Prakash moved the Kerala High Court and submitted that a 7KG packet of "Meo Persian" biscuits, which is available at the Cochin Pet Hospital, would "see his feline friends through the lockdown period". Referring to the lockdown guidelines, the petitioner contended that "animal feed and fodder" had been included in the list of essential commodities.
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Prakash stated that the right to get food and shelter is guaranteed for domesticated animals under Sections 3 and 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. He added that he doesn't cook non-vegetarian food in his house and over the years, his cats had been fed with the above biscuits.
Hearing the petition through video conferencing, Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Shaji P Chaly, in cat vocabulary, said today the court had been "called upon to respond to the desperate purrs of three felines, whose owner alleges that he was denied a vehicle pass to venture out and purchase “Meo-Persian" biscuits for his cats."
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Before directing the state government to allow Prakash to travel and buy biscuits for his cats, the High Court made some crucial observations concerning animal rights.
"Over the last seven decades of working our democratic constitution, we have focused primarily on the rights available to our citizens. We have conveniently forgotten that human species is not alone and that there are other claimants to the bounty nature has to offer," the High Court in its judgment said.
The Court also said that to inculcate healthy respect for the other living creatures and to recognise their rights were therefore no longer a matter of choice for the citizenry, but "a solemn duty under the constitution that governs us all."
"Before parting with the case," the court said, "we might observe, in a lighter vein, that while we are happy to have come to the aid of the felines, in this case, we are also certain that our directions will help avert a “CATastrophe” in the petitioner’s home".
