HC seeks MCD’s reply on seizure of horse drawn carts

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has sought the MCD’s response on a plea seeking seizure of horse drawn carts or ‘tongas’ which are banned from plying in the national capital.

The high court was hearing an application by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) claiming that the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has failed to implement its resolution for phasing out the tongas and rehabilitating their owners.

A bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet PS Arora issued notice to the MCD on the application and listed it for August 7 when the main matter will be heard.

The application was filed in a pending petition in which animal rights activists have sought enforcement of the January 4, 2010 resolution by which the Standing Committee of the MCD had resolved to phase out the tongas and rehabilitate their owners while recognising the plight of equine animals driving the overloaded carts. In its application, PETA’s counsel has submitted that tongas are being allowed to ply freely in crowded public spaces such as Azadpur Mandi and Narela Old Anaj Mandi.

He said on March 5, the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR)-National Research Centre on Equines (NRCE) issued a letter noting that three horses used for illegally plying tongas in Azadpur Mandi were found positive for Glanders, which is a highly contagious zoonotic disease potentially fatal to humans.

The counsel stated that the petitioner sent a letter to the MCD commissioner on May 26, stressing the urgency of the matter. PETA sought the seizure of horse-drawn carts per the MCD’s resolution banning tongas in Delhi and requested the court to direct the MCD to file an action report on the seizures made. In August 2023, the court noted that the MCD had seized only 58 animals and 13 carriages since February 2021. It was informed that there are over 170 tonga license holders in Delhi, and the MCD was issuing new licenses at an increased fee.

The court then directed the MCD to halt issuing new licenses temporarily.