Plea in Delhi HC seeking ban on use of animals in circuses transferred to another bench

New Delhi [India], Aug 17 : The petition filed before the Delhi High Court seeking directions to impose an immediate ban on the use of animals in circuses across the country was on Monday transferred to another bench for hearing.
A division bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan transferred the petition, filed by animal rights organisation the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, to another bench and listed it for hearing on August 20.
During the hearing, it was pointed out that another matter on this issue is pending before a different bench of the High Court. In view of the same, the court directed that this petition be heard by the same bench hearing the other matter.
Advocate Aman Hingorani appeared before the High Court on behalf of PETA India.
PETA India, in its petition, said that the use of weapons and other forms of abuse of animals is inherent, rampant, and widespread in circuses, which commonly violate the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960, the Performing Animals (Registration) Rules, 2001, the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and the Recognition of Zoo Rules, 2009, among others.
Highlighting the risk that circuses pose in spreading zoonotic diseases, which can spread from animals to humans, PETA sought directions to the Central government to ban the use of animals in circuses by notifying the Performing Animals (Registration) (Amendment) Rules, 2018.
"Elephants have been known to carry tuberculosis, horses to carry glanders, birds to carry psittacosis (parrot fever), and camels to carry camelpox and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (which is caused by a coronavirus). Similarly, COVID-19 is overwhelmingly believed to have first infected humans through wildlife," it said.
Opposing speciesism, the plea said that the animals are not ours to use for entertainment and pointed out that several other countries have banned the use of animals in circuses including Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, and Malta.
"The world is already battling a deadly animal-borne disease - it's high time to stop circuses from dragging stressed and potentially sick animals from town to town," PETA India senior legal counsel Swati Sumbly said in a statement earlier.
The plea also points out that animals in circuses are continuously chained or caged and deprived of veterinary care, adequate food, sufficient water, and suitable shelter.
"They are forced to perform confusing, uncomfortable, and even painful tricks and are denied everything natural and important to them. Many display stereotypic, repetitive behaviour indicative of extreme stress," the plea said.
It said that following a complaint by PETA India raising concerns about the plight of animals in circuses stranded during the COVID-19 lockdown, the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI)-- a Central government advisory body--called on States and Union Territories to identify such circuses, inspect the animals, housing conditions, etc and submit a comprehensive report on each circus to the board.