The Supreme Court bench of Justice B.R. Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran disposed of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the National Federation of Women that raised concerns over incidents of mob violence and lynching, particularly by "cow vigilantes" in the name of preventing cattle smuggling and slaughter.

Advocate Nizamuddin Pasha, representing the petitioner, contended that the Court's previous directives aimed at curbing such incidents are being blatantly ignored. It was highlighted that the enactment of cow protection laws in certain States has exacerbated the situation, leading to mob lynchings by self-proclaimed 'cow vigilantes

In regards to the question of mob lynching, the court pointed out that to deal with the same, appropriate directions have been issued in the case of Tehseen Poonawalla v. UOI., W.P. (C) 754/2016, and these directions are binding on all authorities. Further, if the directions are violated, then the aggrieved individual has legal remedies available to him.

The bench observed that Supreme Court Judges sitting in Delhi can’t monitor such issues, as the causes behind such incidents vary across different States. The court also stated that such micromanagement on behalf of the court would not be feasible.

While determining the question of the validity of cow protection laws in different States, the bench reasoned that it would not be correct for the Court to test the validity of 13 different State laws given the fact that it is a generic plea. The Court suggested such issues can be addressed by approaching the High Court of the concerned State.

The bench, while addressing the Petitoner’s prayer for a minimum uniform amount as compensation for injuries to victims of mob lynching, opined that there can’t be a uniform criteria for the grant of compensation to the victims of mob lynching as adequate compensation would differ from case to case.

During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appearing for Union also submitted that under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), mob lynching has now been classified as a separate offense with prescribed penalties.

Accordingly, the petition was disposed of.

Case Title: National Federation Of Indian Women (NFIW) V. Union Of India And Ors., W.P.(C) No. 719/2023