There are no provisions in the  Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Wildlife (Protection, Preservation, Conservation and Management) Act dealing with the subject of cruelty to animals. However, the following provisions relate to hunting and killing of animals:

Section 8. Restriction on Hunting.

No person shall:

(i)         hunt any wild animal by means of a sten gun, drop spear, deadfall, gun trap, explosive projectile, bomb, grenade, baited hook, net, snare or any other trap, an automatic weapon, or a weapon of a calibre used by the Pakistan Army or Police Force or by means of a projectile containing any drug or chemical substance, likely to anaesthetie, paralyse, stupify or render incapable an animal whether partly or totally;

(ii)        hunt any protected animal;

(iii)       hunt any game animal except under a permit and in accordance with the provisions of this Act or the rules:

Provided that no person shall hunt any game animal other than birds or hares with a shot-gun or with non-magnum rifle of 22 calibre or less;

(iv)       use, or have in his possession any net, snare, bhagwa, poison or like injurious substance for the purpose of hunting a game animal;

(v)        use vehicle of any type to pursue any game animal, or to drive or stampede game animal for any purpose whatsoever;

(vi)       shoot any game animal from any conveyance or from within two hundred yards of the conveyance;

(vii)      except in the case of ducks of all kinds, hunt with the help of decoys or call birds;

(viii)     construct or use, for the purpose of hunting any wild animal, any pitfall, game pit, teach or similar excavation, any fence or enclosure, or use bhagwa or any other similar contraband:

Provided that it shall not be an offence to use:

(a)         a motor vehicle or aircraft to drive any wild animal away from an aerodrome or airstrip when such action is necessary to ensure the safety of aircraft using that aerodrome;

(b)        any one or more of the aforesaid prohibited methods if the officer authorised in this behalf grants, at his discretion, a licence with permission to employ such method;

(ix)       except in the case of ducks of all kinds, hunt after sunset and before sunrise;

(x)        hunt by hiding near a water hole of salt licks.

Section 9. Prohibition to Employ Hawks and Dogs Without Special License.

No person shall use hawks for hawking or dogs for coursing the game animals except upon payment of a fee:

(i)      of rupees 100 per annum, in the ease of a hawk; and

(ii)     of rupees 20 per annum, in case of a pair of grey hounds.

Section 10. Animal Found Dead or Killed or Caught Unlawfully.

Any protected animal or game animal which is found dead or which has been killed or caught otherwise than in accordance with the provisions of this Act and any meat or trophy thereof shall be property of Government.

Section 11. Certificate of Lawful Possession.

(1)        No person shall be in possession of any wild animal, dead of alive, trophy or meat of a kind specified in the Second Schedule unless he be in possession of a Certificate of Lawful Possession granted in respect thereof by the officer authorised in this behalf:

Provided that any person importing any wild animal, trophy or meat of a wild animal in accordance with the provisions of this Act, or acquiring such animal, trophy or meat in accordance with the terms of a permit issued under this Act. shall obtain such certificate by applying to the authorised officer within thirty days from the date of importing or acquiring the animal, trophy or meat.

(2)        The officer authorised in this behalf may mark or register the animal, trophy or meat in respect of which a Certificate of Lawful Possession is issued, in the prescribed manner, or he may seize; pending the taking of legal action under this Act, any such animal, trophy or meat which in his opinion has not been legally imported or acquired.

(3)        No person shall counterfeit, change or in any way interfere with any mark or registration of animal, trophy or meat for which a Certificate of Lawful Possession has been issued or alter or in any way change a Certificate of Lawful Possession.

Section 12. Restriction on Transfer of Animals, Trophies or Meat.

(1)        No person shall transfer by gift, sale or otherwise to any other person any animal, trophy or meat of a kind specified in sub-section (1) of section 11 unless he be in possession of a Certificate of Lawful Possession in respect thereof, and such certificate is endorsed with details of the transaction and given to the transfer at the time of the transfer.

(2)        No person shall receive by gift, purchase or otherwise any animal, trophy or meat of a kind specified in sub-section (1) of section 11 unless he receives at the same time a valid Certificate of Lawful Possession in respect thereof.

Section 13. Restriction on Import and Export of Animals, Trophies or Meat.

(1)        No person shall import or attempt to import into the Province any wild animal of an endemic or exotic species, or any trophy or meat of a kind specified in sub-section (1) of section 11, except under an import permit granted under this Act and if such import be from outside Pakistan except through a customs post of entry and subject to any law relating, to control on imports for the time being in force.

(2)        No person shall export or attempt to export out of the Province any animal, trophy or meat specified in sub-section (1) of section 11 except under an export permit granted under this Act and if such export be to any country outside Pakistan except through a customs post of exit and subject to any law relating to control on export for the time being in force.

(3)        Nothing in this section shall apply to any animal, trophy or meat in transit through the Province if such animal, trophy or meat:

(i)         is accompanied by necessary transit customs documents;

(ii)        is entered through a customs post of entry or is schedules to a customs post of exit; or

(iii)       is not unloaded from the conveyance on which it is being carried or, in the case of rail or air transport, it does not leave the precincts of the railway station or airport at which it is landed or trans-shipped or does not remain therefor more than forth-eight hours.

Section 14. Restriction on Dealings in Animals, Trophies or Meat.

(1)        No person shall as a profession, trade or business, buy, sell or otherwise deal in wild animal, trophies or meat thereof or process or manufacture goods or articles from such trophies or meat, unless he is in possession of a valid licence, hereinafter called a dealer’s licence, to do so, issued by an officer authorised in this behalf.

(2)       The officer authorised under sub-section (1) may, on payment of such fees as may be prescribed, grant a dealer’s licence to be valid for one year to any person which shall entitle the licensee to deal in any wild animal, trophy or meat thereof, or any class of wild animals, throphies or meat specified in such licence.

(3)      For the purpose of assessment of fees, dealers may be divided into different classes and a different fee may be prescribed for each class.

(4)      The holder of the dealer’s licence shall maintain such register or record of his dealings in such manner as may be prescribed, and shall produce them for inspection at any reasonable time when called upon to do so.

Section 15. Wildlife Sanctuary.

(1)        Government may, by notification in the officials Gazette, declare any area which is the property of Government or over which Government has proprietary rights to be wild-life sanctuary and may demarcate it in such manner as maybe prescribed.

(2)        The wild-life sanctuary shall be set aside as undisturbed breeding ground for the protection of wild-life and access thereto for public shall, except in accordance with the rules, be prohibited and no exploitation of forest therein shall be allowed except for reducing fire-hazards, epidemic or insect attacks or other natural calamities.

(3)        No person shall:

• enter or reside,
• cultivate any land,
• damage or destroy any vegetation,
• hunt, kill or capture any wild animal or try any gun or other fire-arm within one mile of the boundaries,
• introduce any exotic species of airaal or plant;
• introduce any domestic animal or allow it to stray;
• cause any fire; or
• pollute water, in a wild-life sanctuary:

Provided that Government may, for scientific purposes or for aesthetic enjoyment or betterment of scenery, authorise the doing of the aforementioned acts.

Section 16. National Park.

(1)        With a view to the protection and preservation of scenery, flora and fauna in the natural estate, Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, declare any area which is the property of Government or over which Government has proprietary rights to be a national park ,and may demarcate it in such manner as may be prescribed.

(2)        A national park shall be accessible to public for recreation, education and research subject to such restrictions as Government may impose.

(3)        Provision for access roads to and construction of rest houses, hostels and other buildings in the national park along with amenities for public may be so made and the forest therein shall be so managed and forest produce obtained as not to impair the object of the establishment of the national park.

(4)        The following acts shall be prohibited in a national park:

(i)          hunting, shooting, trapping, killing or capturing of any wild animal in a national park or within three miles radius of its boundary;

(ii)          firing any gun or doing any other act which may disturb any animal or bird or doing any aci which interferes with the breading places;

(iii)       felling, tapping, burning or in any way damaging or destroying, taking, collecting or removing any plant or tree therefrom

(iv)       clearing or breaking up any land for cultivation, mining or for any other purposes; and

(v)        polluting water flowing in and through the national park:

Provided that Government may, for scientific purpose or betterment of the national park, authorise the doing of the aforementioned prohibited act.

Section 17. Game Reserve.

Government may declare any area to be a game reserve, where hunting and shooting of wild animal shall not be allowed, except under special permit, which may specify the maximum number of animals or birds that may be killed or captured and the area and duration for which; such permits shall be valid.

Section 18. Alteration of Boundaries of Wildlife Sanctuary National Park and Game Reserve.

Government may, from time to time, by notification in the official Gazette, declare any alteration in the boundaries of wild-life sanctuary, of national park, and game reserve declared under this Act.

Section 19. Private Game Reserve.

(1)        Where Government is satisfied that an area of private land has been dedicated by its owner for the purposes similar to a game reserve, reserve, it may, by notification in the official Gazette, and on the application of the owner of the area, declare such area to be a private game reserve.

(2)        Hunting and shooting of wild animals by any person other than the owner of the area shall not be allowed in a private game reserve except with the permission of the owner thereof.

(3)        The owner of a private game reserve shall exercise within the limits of his private game reserve the same powers as are exercisable by an officer under this Act.

(4)        Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, at any time, declare that any private game reserve shall cease to by a private game reserve.

Section 20. Penalties.

(1)        Whoever contravenes or attempts to contravene:

(i)         any provisions of sections 11, 12, 13 and 14 shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to a period of one year or with fine which may extend to rupees 1,000, or with both, and any licence or permit granted or issued to him under this Act shall be suspended for a period of two years;

(ii)        any provisions of section 8 shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to two years, or with fine which may extend to rupees 1,000, or with both;

(iii)       any provisions of section 9, 10 and 27 shall be punished with a fine which may extend to rupees 500;

(iv)       any provisions of this Act or any rule for the contravention of which no specific penalty is provided, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both.

(2)        Whoever interferes or attempts to interfere in the performance of any functions or in the discharge of any duties under this Act, shall be punished as in clause (i) of sub-section (1).

(3)        Whoever, having already been convicted of an offence under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) is again convicted thereunder, shall, on every subsequent conviction, be punished with imprisonment which shall not be less than 12 months, or with fine which shall not be less than rupees 1,000 or both, and his fire-arm, vehicle, appliance or anything used in the commission of the offence and his hunting licence shall be confiscated and he shall not be eligible to a hunting permit, licence or a special permit for a period of two years. 

Section 22. Killing or Capturing in Self-defence.

(1) Not withstanding any other provision of this Act, it shall not be an offence if:

(a)        any person kills any wild animal by any means in the immediate defense of his own life or that of any other person;

(b)        the owner of standing crops or his employee kills any wild animal which is doing material damage to those crops by any means within the bounds of those crops;

(c)        the owner of livestock or his employees kills any wild animal that is doing damage to the livestock by any means within a reasonable distance where that livestock is grazing or where it is enclosed for the night:

Provided that clause (b) and clause (c) shall not apply to any unlawful cultivation in a national park, wildlife sanctuary and a reserved or protected forest or any livestock unlawfully grazing or herded therein.

(2)        The killing under sub-section (1) of wild animals specified in the First and Third Schedules shall be reported to the nearest office established for the purposes of this Act with the least possible delay.

(3)        The meat or trophy of any wild animal killed in self-defence shall be the property of Government and shall be disposed of as directed by the officer authorised in this behalf.