FIR booked for goat sacrifice in K'taka following PETA India complaint

BENGALURU: Karnataka Police have registered an FIR in connection with the sacrifice of three goats at a public place in Chitradurga district following a complaint by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), India.

The goats were sacrificed during the festival of ‘Ugadi’ — New Year’s Day according to the Hindu calendar celebrated in Karnataka — in Parasurampura village.

The slaughter was caught on video in full public view, and the footage shows the accused standing in front of three goats and beheading them one after the other with a sword-like weapon, PETA stated on Friday.

The FIR was registered under sections 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the Karnataka Prevention of Animal Sacrifices Act, 1959; sections 34 and 429 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; and Sections 3, 11(1)(a), and 11(1)(l) of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.

“PETA India commends the Chitradurga police for taking steps to send the message that cruelty to animals will not be tolerated,” says PETA India Cruelty Response Coordinator Saloni Sakaria.

“Just as human sacrifice is now treated as murder, at a time when India is embarking on space missions, the archaic practice of animal sacrifice must end. PETA India also recommends that this man undergo psychiatric evaluation and receive counselling, as abusing animals indicates deep mental disturbance.”

The Supreme Court has ordered that animals can be slaughtered only in licensed slaughterhouses and that municipal authorities must ensure compliance with this ruling. The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Slaughter House) Rules, 2001, and the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011, permit the slaughter of animals for food only in licensed slaughterhouses equipped with species-specific stunning equipment.

Gujarat, Kerala, Puducherry, and Rajasthan already have laws in place prohibiting the religious sacrifice of any animal in any temple or its precinct.

Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana prohibit it in any place of public religious worship or adoration or its precinct or in any congregation or procession connected with religious worship on a public street.