The Supreme Court has refused to stay Himachal Pradesh High Court order to put an end to the age-old practice of sacrificing animals during religious ceremonies in the hill state.
A bench headed by Chief Justice HL Dattu issued notice to Himachal government and sought it’s response on the appeal which contended that the High Court erred in banning sacrifices in temples and in buildings adjoining places of worship.
Earlier, The Himachal Pradesh High Court has imposed a complete ban on animal sacrifices in the name of religious practices in the state. A division bench of Justice Rajiv Sharma and Justice Sureshwar Thakur had observed that manner in which thousands of animals were being sacrificed every year in the name of religious worship that causing immense pain and suffering to the innocent animals and observed that the innocent animals cannot be permitted to be sacrificed to appease the God/deity in a barbaric manner.
Kullu legislator Maheshwar Singh has approached the Supreme Court challenging the high court order and pleaded for immediate stay on it in view of coming Dussehra festival.
As per the reports, even goddess Hadimba, the prominent deity of the Seraj and Kullu Valleys has also endorsed the Court order and banned sacrificing animals. Priest of the Hadimba temple said the pronouncement was made by the goddess (through the oracle) on Sunday, when the over 250-year-old temple was celebrating its first year of reconstruction.
Earlier, previous year, when new Hadimba temple was refurbished, about 31 animals were sacrificed in the temple and more then 100 animals were sacrificed at various other places by the devotees.
Even local administration has successfully implemented Court order in the ongoing Kullu Dussehra festival, where hundreds of animal were sacrificed to please god.
