Supreme Court suspends Jammu & Kashmir High Court ban on beef for two months

The Supreme Court on Monday suspended the Jammu & Kashmir High Court order banning the sale of beef in the state, for two months.

The Supreme Court was hearing a plea by Jammu and Kashmir government against two "conflicting" orders of the High Court pertaining to the slaughter of bovine animals and enforcement of a bar on beef sale in the state, claiming these were being "misused" to disturb peace.

The apex court kept in abeyance for two months the Jammu bench’s order barring the sale of beef and asking police to enforce the ban.

It also directed the high court’s chief justice to set up a three-judge bench to resolve issues arising from the conflicting orders of the two benches.

While the Jammu bench of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court had ordered enforcement of the bar on the sale of beef in the state, the Srinagar bench scrapped the law that barred slaughter of bovine animals.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Assembly was rocked by opposition's protest over beef ban.

National Conference (NC) raised the issue of beef ban with its leader Omar Abdullah questioning why the BJP-PDP Government approached the Supreme Court when the legislature is "free" to scrap the 1932 provision in the Ranbir Penal Code prohibiting cow slaughter.

(With agency inputs)