TN govt failed to get permission for Jallikattu,' Stalin leads DMK protest
Chennai: A day after the Supreme Court rejecting the plea to pass judgement on Jallikattu before Pongal, the DMK on Friday launched its state-wide protest against the Centre for failing to ensure that the bull-taming sport could be conducted on the occasion of Pongal.
DMK workers led by their working president MK Stalin and Kanimozhi, were seen protesting near the Collector's office on Friday.
“Jallikattu is our tradition but now Centre and State government have failed to get us the permission to conduct it,” Stalin said.
The opposition party blamed both the AIADMK led-government in the state and the BJP govt at Centre for "not taking appropriate, timely steps" to ensure a decision in favour of Jallikattu.
Earlier on Thursday, a bench comprising justices Dipak Misra and R Banumathi told a group of lawyers, who requested for the verdict, that it is unfair to ask the bench to pass an order.
The apex court, however, said that the draft of judgement has been prepared but it was not possible to deliver it before Saturday when Jallikattu is to be organised.
Recalling the assurances of both Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan that efforts would be made to conduct the stalled sport, DMK Working President MK Stalin asked, "What answers are they going to give now? What is going to be their answer to the Tamil Nadu people and the youth?" He wanted Panneerselvam and Radhakrishnan to answer the people on the present situation, adding his party continued to be firm in its stand supporting Jallikattu.
Referring to his party's January 3 protest in Madurai urging the State and Central governments to take immediate steps to conduct Jallikattu, he said "still both the governments did not give importance to this issue."
"As usual, though Chief Minister Panneerselvam wrote a letter to the Centre on the issue, he did not visit Delhi," Stalin had said in a press release in Chennai adding the Chief Minister did not exert pressure on the issue over the Union government.
"The Central government did not take any step to promulgate an ordinance to facilitate conduct of Jallikattu," he said.
