Advocate Owais Awan has won a historic case in the Islamabad High Court against the Islamabad zoo management. The plight of Kaavan, a depressed elephant who had spent nearly three decades being confined to a small cage in the zoo, was among the issues brought before the attention of the court.
IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah in a detailed 67-page decision has pointed to the lack of necessities at the Marghazar Zoo and has ordered that all the animals be moved to an animal sanctuary within 60 days. The Islamabad zoo will only be allowed to keep animals once they are capable of providing physical, psychological and emotional care to the animals.
Justice Athar Minallah, in his judgement, cited a saying of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW):
“A good deed done to an animal is as meritorious as a good deed done to a human being, while an act of cruelty to an animal is as bad as an act of cruelty to a human being.”