Punjab & Haryana High Court declares all animals in Haryana to be 'legal persons'

Haryana Polity and Governance

10-Oct-19

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled that animals and birds have legal rights like humans and declared citizens the guardians of animal kingdom with duty to ensure their welfare and protection.

Key Facts :

The verdict comes nearly a year after Uttarakhand High Court passed a similar order to protect and promote greater welfare of animals.
The court ruled that the entire animal kingdom, including avian and aquatic, had a right to life and bodily integrity, honour and dignity, are entitled to justice and could not be treated merely as objects or property.
The animals should be healthy, comfortable, well nourished, safe, able to express innate behavior without pain, fear and distress.
To avoid inconvenience to animals, the court directed the police to ensure that carts driven by animals were given the right of way. Their use was also limited to nine hours a day in the aggregate, and not more than five hours without a break.
Further, the Bench has also fixed the load to be carried by animals and banned their deployment for pulling vehicles in extreme cold and heat conditions.
It asserted that animals might be mute but we as a society have to speak on their behalf.