Mumbai, Aug 29 (Reporter) The Bombay High Court on Thursday asked municipal corporations in Maharashtra to consider a temporary ban on animal slaughter and sale of meat during a week-long Jain festival, Paryushan Parv, from August 31 to September 7. The court’s suggestion was given during the hearing of a Public Interest Litigation filed by a public charitable trust from Pune, Sheth Motishaw Lalbaug Jain Charities, seeking court directions to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and civic agencies of Pune, Mira Bhaindar and Nashik, among others, for imposing a ban on slaughter of animals as well as sale of meat during this holy week. A Division bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar also asked the civic bodies to decide on representations made by the petitioner organisation on the issue. “We do not see any impediment in granting the prayer (to direct civic bodies to decide representations). And we accordingly direct the authorities to decide the representation of the petitioner seeking to impose a temporary ban on the slaughtering of animals and sale of meat during (from) August 31 to September 7. We urge the civic bodies to take a decision urgently since the festival commences from (on) August 31.” The petitioner claimed that slaughter takes during Paryushan Parv will be detrimental to the cause of Jainism and will create a vitiating environment. The petitioner claimed that the globally observed festival marked a period of “spiritual reflection, self-purification, fasting, meditation, and non-violence”. “Notwithstanding the sacred nature of the festival, the members of the community are forced to witness the animal slaughter which continues during the period in almost all parts of Maharashtra. This ongoing practice not only contradicts the very ethos of the festival but also creates an environment of dissonance and conflict between the values of non-violence that the festival represents and the realities of animal slaughter,” the PIL claimed...////...