The Nagaland government's order to prohibit the commercial import, trading, and sale of dogs, as well as the commercial sale of dog meat in restaurants, has been overturned by the Kohima Bench of the Gauhati High Court.
On June 2, a bench headed by Justice Marli Vankun ruled that the chief secretary of Nagaland was not the right person to issue the July 4, 2020, ban order.
"The prohibition of sale and consumption of dog meat, by the Executive branch of the Government, without there being any law passed by the legislation in relation to trade and consumption of dog meat is liable thus to be set aside even though the impugned notification dated 04.07.2020 is said to have been passed in accordance with a Cabinet decision," the order reads, as quoted by Bar and Bench.
Dog markets, the commercial import and trading of dogs, and the sale of cooked and uncooked dog meat were all prohibited by the state cabinet.
After the state government respondents failed to respond to a petition against the prohibition citing provisions of the Food Safety & Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, the ban was temporarily suspended in November 2020 by a single bench of the high court.
The traders who were granted licenses by the Kohima municipal council to import dogs and sell dog meat filed the plea, challenging the ban's legal basis and jurisdiction.
According to the petitioners, the government's notification relied incorrectly on the Food Safety Act.
The court maintained that the primary issue to be considered was whether the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had overstepped its authority when it issued a circular in August 2014 stating that regulation 2.5 of the Food Product Standards and Food Additives Regulation 2011 defined animals, carcasses, and meat, whereas sub-regulation 2.5.1(a) defined "animal," and whether the state of Nagaland had correctly issued the disputed notification on July 4, 2020, in accordance with the circular.
The judge said that the definition of "animals" did not include dogs or canines, which is not surprising given that dog meat is only eaten in some northeastern states.
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