The Madras High Court has ordered that the subordinate courts in the State should henceforth not grant temporary custody of seized cattle to those accused of having violated the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act of 1960, as it had become a practice for such persons to either sell or kill the animals.
Justice G. Jayachandran made it clear that the seized cattle should be kept under the custody of the nearest ‘Goshala’ (cattle shelter) until the completion of the entire trial and that the cost for maintenance of the bovines must be collected from those facing the case under the PCA Act.
