After hearing a petition filed by a licensed dog meat trader, the Kohima bench of Gauhati High Court put a stay on the order issued by the Nagaland government banning dog meat. Nagaland government had banned the commercial sale of dog meat on July 4, 2020.
The bench of Justice S Hukato Swu ruled that the ban may be stayed until the next returnable date since the state government has not submitted the response yet.
After a cabinet meeting on July 3, State Chief Secretary Temjen Joy had signed a notification banning commercial import and trading of dogs and dog markets and commercial sale of dog meat in markets and dine in restaurants. The order came into effect on July 4, 2020. The government cited Food and Safety Standards as the main reason behind the ban but it is believed to be the pressure that the state has encountered from several animal safety and rights groups from across the world.
A dog meat trader licensed under Kohima Municipal Corporation has challenged the ban and raised the concern that many dog meat traders have lost their livelihood and the agony is much extreme amid this pandemic.
The petitioner had also mentioned that the Chief Secretary is not empowered to take such decisions under Food and Safety matters. The petition also stated that the Food and Safety Standard guidelines are not properly followed by the government.
