Allahabad HC Monitors 14-Month Battle Against Monkey Menace, Directs High-Powered Committee to Report Regularly

Allahabad: In a Public Interest Litigation that has spanned fourteen months and nearly a dozen hearings, the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad has continued to press the Uttar Pradesh government to develop a concrete, actionable plan to control the state's persistent monkey menace, culminating in its most recent order directing a newly constituted thirteen-member High-Powered Committee to hold regular meetings and place its progress before the Court, rather than allow the exercise to "remain on paper only."

Origins of the Petition

The petition, filed by Vineet Sharma and another petitioner, sought judicial intervention to compel the State of Uttar Pradesh and eleven other respondents to take concrete steps against the Rhesus Macaque menace that has, over successive hearings, been described by the Court as creating havoc in the lives of the general public. When the matter first came up before the Chief Justice's Court on May 6, 2025, a Bench comprising Chief Justice Arun Bhansali and Justice Kshitij Shailendra directed the respondents to place on record affidavits detailing efforts already made to control the menace, along with their future plans, and issued notice to several respondents who were yet to appear.

A Pattern of Institutional Buck-Passing

As the case progressed through hearings on July 10, August 28, September 19, October 31 and December 3 of 2025, a recurring theme emerged from the Bench's observations: successive government departments appeared unwilling to accept ownership of the problem. In its order dated September 19, 2025, the Court noted that despite all respondents conceding the existence of the menace, none of the respondents apparently is prepared to take the responsibility to control the said menace, with each department seeking to shift responsibility onto another. The Court went on to implead the Principal Secretary, Urban Development Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh, as an additional party respondent after the District Collector, Ghaziabad's communication to the department went unanswered.

By December 3, 2025, when the State attempted to justify continued inaction by citing a fresh recommendation from the National Board of Wild Life to include the Rhesus Macaque under Schedule II of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, the Court firmly rejected the submission, holding that the submissions made cannot be accepted on face value inasmuch as while the problem is not disputed, willingness to tackle the problem is clearly absent, and that the proposal was being used merely to continue the pattern of inaction.

Shifting Responsibility and the Formation of a Work Plan

A meeting held on January 8, 2026, finally fixed responsibility for managing the menace with the State's Environment, Forest and Climate Change Department, which was tasked with preparing a comprehensive work plan within a month, with support from other departments. However, when the matter came up before a different Bench comprising Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and Justice Kunal Ravi Singh on February 17, 2026, the Additional Advocate General sought as much as a full year to conduct a systematic field survey of the Rhesus Macaque population before any action plan could be finalised, while assuring the Court that the State's existing Standard Operating Procedure on capture, transportation and release of monkeys would meanwhile be enforced by district-level authorities.

The Chief Justice's Bench, resuming supervision of the matter on April 6, 2026, was informed that the petitioners had identified serious deficiencies in the SOP eventually placed on record, submitting that it only provides for skeleton and all the limbs are missing, with no facilities for sterilisation of monkeys, inadequate transport infrastructure, and no trained manpower to implement the stated procedure. The petitioners subsequently filed a detailed counter-affidavit on May 13, 2026, placing on record their own proposed action plan addressing population control and habitat improvement for the animals, with the Court directing the State to examine this proposal through a duly constituted committee rather than simply denying its contents.

Constitution of the High-Powered Committee

In its most recent order dated July 16, 2026, the Court was informed that pursuant to its earlier directions, the State held a meeting on June 16, 2026, at which it was decided to constitute a committee to examine the petitioners' proposed action plan, culminating in the formal constitution of a thirteen-member High-Powered Committee on July 15, 2026. The State also informed the Court that Urban Local Bodies had been directed to continue catching, transporting and releasing monkeys from urban areas, and that the Wildlife Institute of India, which is preparing a long-term mitigation report, had been asked to expedite a short-term strategy.

Taking note of this development, the Bench directed that the Committee take up the petitioners' proposed action plan with urgency, hold meetings at regular intervals, and ensure that its work does not remain confined to paper. The Court ordered that the minutes and progress of the Committee's meetings be placed before it at the next hearing, and directed that a copy of the order be communicated to the Committee's chairpersons.

Case Details

Case: Vineet Sharma and Another v. State of Uttar Pradesh and 11 Others
Court: High Court of Judicature at Allahabad
Case No.: Public Interest Litigation (PIL) No. 1030 of 2025
Bench (Chief Justice's Court): Chief Justice Arun Bhansali and Justice Kshitij Shailendra; also heard by Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and Justice Kunal Ravi Singh
Counsel: Pawan Kumar Tiwari and Akash Vashistha for the Petitioners; A.S.G.I., C.S.C., Additional Advocate General Manish Goyal with A.K. Goyal (A.C.S.C.), and multiple standing counsel for the Respondents
Latest Order Date: July 16, 2026
Latest Direction: Thirteen-member High-Powered Committee, constituted on July 15, 2026, directed to examine the petitioners' proposed action plan and report progress and minutes of its meetings at the next hearing
Next Listing: September 1, 2026