VISHALAKSHI AMMA Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner who is an octogenarian has approached this court seeking orders for preserving a sambar antler which is stated to have been preserved by her for many years.

(2.) It is stated that the petitioner and her predecessors have been keeping the sambar antler for the last more than 150 years; that she preferred Ext.P1 application for certificate of ownership of the sambar antler when she came to know of the requirement to declare the same and that Ext.P1 has been rejected by the second respondent as per Ext.P3 communication stating that the petitioner has not declared the sambar antler in terms of the Declaration of Wild Life Stock Rules, 2003 (the Rules). In terms of Ext.P3, the petitioner was also directed to surrender the sambar antler to the Divisional Forest Officer, Kozhikode. It is stated by the petitioner that pursuant to Ext.P3 direction, she has surrendered the sambar antler on 8.6.2018 and later preferred another representation on 5.7.2018 to the second respondent for grant of ownership certificate. It is also stated by the petitioner that the enquiries made thereafter revealed that several persons who have preferred applications for ownership certificates much after the time limit prescribed under the Rules for declaration have been granted ownership certificates. 10 among such certificates obtained by the petitioner under the Right to Information Act have been produced as Ext.P9 series in the writ petition. The petitioner, therefore, seeks directions to the second respondent to take a decision on Ext.P7 representation in the light of Ext.P9 series ownership certificates.

(3.) A statement has been filed on behalf of the second respondent. The stand taken by the second respondent in the statement is that in terms of the provisions of the Rules, the petitioner should have declared the sambar antler on or before 18.10.2003 and in so far as the petitioner has not declared the sambar antler before 18.10.2003, the petitioner is not entitled to ownership certificate in respect of the same. It is asserted by the second respondent that nobody has been given ownership certificate in respect of any wild life stock which is not declared within the time stipulated in the Rules.