Telangana high court issues notice to GHMC chief over closure of meat shops on Oct 2 | Hyderabad News

Hyderabad: Telangana high court on Monday issued notices to GHMC commissioner RV Karnan in a contempt petition alleging that he violated an earlier court order by directing the closure of slaughterhouses and meat and beef shops across the city on Oct 2, 2026.Justice NV Shravan Kumar issued the directions while hearing a petition filed by Vadla Srikanth, a law graduate from Tarnaka.Srikanth had earlier challenged a GHMC order banning cattle slaughterhouses and retail beef shops. Vijay Gopal, appearing for Srikanth, contended that the high court, while disposing of his writ petition in Feb 2026, had directed authorities to follow the provisions of the GHMC Act, 1955, while issuing such orders.“Despite this order, GHMC issued a press release on Sept 30 announcing closure of sheep and goat and cattle slaughterhouses and retail meat and beef shops on Oct 2 on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti,” Vijay Gopal said.He alleged that the decision was not supported by regulations framed in accordance with the GHMC Act and that the relevant regulation had not been gazetted.He also contended that closure of meat shops affects citizens’ and traders’ fundamental rights under Article 19(1)(g) and therefore must strictly comply with law.The petitioner sought action against the commissioner for alleged wilful disobedience of the Feb order and requested the court to impose a cost of ₹50,000 on the commissioner.