Alld HC upholds detention of cow slaughter accused under NSA

Rajesh Kumar Pandey | tnn

Prayagraj: Allahabad high court has upheld the detention of a cow slaughter accused under the National Security Act, observing that slaughtering of a cow evokes strong emotions and even violent reactions as it hurts the religious sentiments of a large section of the society.

A bench of Justice JJ Munir and Justice Sanjiv Kumar passed the order on April 16 while dismissing the habeas corpus writ petition filed by Sameer who was accused of slaughtering a cow and two calves in the jungle of Shamli district around Holi festival in 2025. Sameer, through his father Shamshad, had challenged his detention order issued on May 15, 2025, by Shamli district magistrate.

“There are some issues, where the community is sensitive to the extent that if these surface, there is an inherent potentiality of creating widespread ripples in society that would affect the even tempo of life. One of them is cow slaughter,” the court said.

The court endorsed the detention order on the grounds that the petitioner could indulge in activity prejudicial to the maintenance of public order upon his release from jail.

Sameer’s detention was ordered by Shamli DM under the NSA and subsequently confirmed by state govt.

On March 15, 2025, police had found the carcasses of cow and two calves in an agricultural field in a Shamli village. Since Holi was underway, the incident led to unrest among the Hindu population, prompting the deployment of forces to maintain peace.

Police claimed that an enraged crowd comprising local villagers and workers from various Hindu organizations gathered at the site, and they shouted slogans demanding the immediate arrest of the offenders responsible

Following a police investigation, Sameer and his associates were arrested and they confessed to slaughtering a cow and two calves in the jungle.

Police later received the intelligence that the petitioner was actively trying to secure his release on bail and had sent messages from jail that upon being released, he would again commit cow slaughter and that the police could not harm him.

Apprehending that he could secure bail from the high court, while he was denied relief from the district court, the impugned (under challenged) detaining order was passed against him.

During the proceedings before the high court, Sameer’s counsel argued that the offence attributed to him is a petty offence, triable by a magistrate, which, even if established to have been committed by him, would constitute “no more than a violation of the law and order”. Thus, it was submitted that the NSA detention was unwarranted.

State govt’s counsel, on the other hand, defended the impugned order.

In its ruling, the bench relied upon a 2002 order of the high court in Shaukat Ali v. Union of India and others wherein it was noted that cow slaughter foments communal tension, brings disharmony and results in a situation that leads to disturbance of public order.

The bench also addressed the argument as to whether a man already in jail could be detained preventively. It referred to the Supreme Court’s ruling in Kamarunnissa versus Union of India to note that the authority can validly pass a detention order against such a person if there is a real possibility of their release on bail and reliable material showing they would likely indulge in prejudicial activities upon release.

The court also rejected Sameer’s contention that there was an inordinate delay by state govt and the advisory board in deciding his representation against the detention.
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