New Delhi: Yet another attempt by lovers of Jallikattu and bullock cart race to revive these sports in Tamil Nadu mainly during Pongal festival failed as the Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to review its May 2014 judgment banning such sports.
Last week the apex court stayed the Centre's January 7 notification permitting Jallikattu.
A Bench of Justices V. Gopala Gowda and Pin-aki Chandra Ghose (who was part of the May 14 verdict) dismissed three review petitions observing ‘no merits’. Curio-usly the review petition filed by Tamil Nadu was not taken up by the bench on Thursday.
The petitions were filed by Tamil Nadu Par-ampariya Veera Vilay-attu Mattu Vandi Kaala-igal State Welfare Asso-ciation, Arulmigu Mup-pallisamy Temple and Veera Vilaiyaattu Meetppu Kalagam’, a group of individuals organised for the retri-eval of traditional and adventurous sports of Tamils seeking review of the ban on jallikattu.
They submitted that the court failed to consider that the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, gives rights to one community to kill cows and bulls as part of their religious rights.
Yet now Hindus are being denied the right to use our own bulls for Eru-Thaz-huvuthal (Jallikattu) and other religious festivals which is manifestly discriminatory under the Constitution.
It was pointed out that the apex court had not considered the reports filed by the District Collectors showing that the events were being organised as directed by this Court, which only relied on the self-serving and one-sided reports of the Animal Welfare Boa-rd.
This Court failed to appreciate that there was no conflict between the State Act and the Central Act and therefore there was no question of any repugnancy. They pleaded for lifting the ban.
In May 2014, the apex court held that animals like bulls have also a right against the human beings not to be tortured and against infliction of unnecessary pain, and banned Jallikattu (bull fight) and bullock cart race in Tamil Nadu bei-ng conducted every year from January to May.
The court said the Animal Welfare Board of India had given details of the manner in which Jallikattu was held in Tamil Nadu, and the torture and cruelty meted out to the bulls, which is unimaginable. Being dumb and helpless, they suffer in silence.
It said “forcing the Bull and keeping the same in the waiting area for a number of hours and subjecting it to scorching sun, is not for the well-being of the animal".
"Forcing and pulling bulls by nose ropes into the narrow closed enclosure of vadivasal, subjecting it to all forms of torture, fear, pain and suffering by forcing it to go the arena and also over-powering it at the arena by the Bull tamers, are not for the well-being of the animal.” The petitioners pleaded for review of this verdict.
