UP govt to pay Rs 15L over vehicle seizure on slaughter suspicion

Allahabad: The Allahabad High Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to pay over Rs 15 lakh in compensation to a man whose vehicle was seized on suspicion of cattle smuggling for slaughter.

In 2023, Tej Prakash’s vehicle was stopped by the Mirzapur Police on the assumption that two bullocks were being transported to West Bengal for slaughter.

Mirzapur shares a border with Bihar. The vehicle was seized and subsequently confiscated.

The court found that the action was based merely on suspicion rather than concrete evidence.

“Such a conclusion is founded merely upon conjectures and surmises and is wholly unsupported by any independent evidence,” Justice Sandeep Jain said.

“Unless there exists positive and cogent evidence indicating that the destination of the vehicle was outside Uttar Pradesh or that the transportation was intended for slaughter, no such presumption can legally be drawn merely because the vehicle happened to be intercepted in a border district,” he further said.

The court also said that seizing the vehicle snatched the owner’s only income and ordered its immediate release. It also rejected the allegation of animal cruelty, observing that the two bullocks were never examined by any veterinary doctor.

“The petitioner’s monthly loss of income can reasonably be assessed at Rs 40,000 per month. The High Court thereby asks the government to pay additional compensation of Rs 25,000 for mental agony, financial hardship and harassment,” the bench said.