Tamil Nadu appeals to SC against Madras HC order on cow slaughter ban

The Tamil Nadu government has filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court against a May 27 direction of the Madras High Court to impose a ban on cow slaughter across the State by implementing an August 1976 government order.

The petition was filed by the Secretary to the State government. It has arraigned as respondents K. Surya alias K. Surya Prasanth, the youth wing secretary of Indu Makkal Katchi who had filed the original writ petition in the High Court, and officials including the Director General of Police. Advocate P.V. Yogeswaran, appearing for Mr. Surya, has filed a caveat in the apex court.

The May 27 direction was passed by a Division Bench of Justices G.R. Swaminathan and V. Lakshminarayanan directed the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police/Head of Police Force (DGP/HoPF) to ensure that no cow or calf got slaughtered across Tamil Nadu either on the eve of Bakrid on Thursday (May 28, 2026) or on any other day.

The order was based on the 1976 order which prohibited cow slaughter in the interest of milk production and improvement of rural economy.

Justice Swaminathan, who authored the decision, had highlighted that Article 48 of the Constitution required the State to take steps for prohibiting the slaughter of cows, calves and other milch as well as draught cattle. Even during the debates in the Constituent Assembly, it had been underlined that cow was a revered animal and that it had been associated with our civilisation from the time of Lord Krishna.