Thousands stage protests against ban on Jallikattu

Thousands of people yesterday took to the streets in Alanganallur town in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, protesting against a ban on Jallikattu, an ancient and popular bull-taming sport that marks the Makar Sankranthi celebrations.
The protesters, including men and women, assembled in the town well-known for conducting Jallikattu.
A large contingent of police has been deployed in the town to prevent violent incidents.
Meanwhile, Jallikattu was held in defiance of a Supreme Court in Karaikudi. In some places, rekla or bullock-cart races were held.
However, as Jallikattu was not allowed to be held, people hoisted black flags on their homes and shops remained closed in Alanganallur. This time the sport was held in places traditionally not associated with Jallikattu in a bid to avoid police preventing it.
Speaking to reporters here, federal Minister of State for Shipping Pon Radhakrishnan said the event should not be seen as defying the Supreme Court order but as an expression of people’s feelings.
He said organisations like the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) will submit the pictures taken yesterday to the Supreme Court and demand a ban on it.
Radharkrishnan felt that the court should not take into consideration such pictures as it is just a protest and nothing more.
In Jallikattu, a man is expected to hang on to the bull’s hump for a stipulated distance or hold on to the hump for a minimum of three jumps made by the animal.
The Supreme Court in May 2014 banned Jallikattu in Tamil Nadu. The court also held that bulls cannot be used as performing animals either for Jallikattu events or for bullock-cart races in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra or elsewhere in the country.
Ever since the ban, people have been demanding that the central government take necessary legal steps to allow the sport.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam on January 9 urged the central government to promulgate an ordinance enabling Jallikattu/bull-taming sport during the Pongal festival.
But that did not happen, which led to protests at several places across Tamil Nadu, culminating in a massive demonstration in Alanganallur.
In Chennai, opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader M K Stalin urged the central government to ban Peta as it “is anti-national”.
He also urged the central government to dissolve the existing management of the Animal Welfare Board and constitute a new team with representation from Tamil Nadu.
“Only then would it be understood that traditional sports like Jallikattu are not cruelty inflicted upon animals but signifies the cultural link between the man and the animal,” Stalin said in a statement.