The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) and several other animal welfare bodies moved Supreme Court challenging the new law on Jallikattu that was unanimously passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly on Tuesday. The apex court will hear the matter on Monday, January 30, along with the central government's plea to withdraw the 2016 notification allowing Jallikattu.
The petition came after the state assembly passed an amendment bill, in a special session on Monday, to hold Jallikattu events across the state without obstacles. The bill was passed as a replacement to the ordinance that was promulgated previously. The TN government's move came after widespread protests against the apex court's ban on the bull-taming sport were carried out across the state with Marina Beach in Chennai being the epicentre.
The state police, then, began forcefully evicting protesters from the beach on Monday, following which the protests took a violent turn. DMK working president MK Stalin and Kanimozhi had also gone on a one-day hunger strike in support of Jallikattu. Several Tamil actors, including Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan, also came out in support of the bull-taming sport.
The SC had previously banned the sport citing animal cruelty as the reason.
However, the central government's plea to the SC to withdraw the 2016 notification that allowed the use of bulls as performing animals comes as fresh twist. If the notification is withdrawn, the basis of the case would be on rocky grounds. The legality of the notification has been under challenge in the apex court since a year. In December 2016, the bench had reserved the judgement on the legal validity of the notification after hearing arguments.
Several parties, including the AIADMK, have already filed various caveats in the SC over the last two days, just in case the bill is challenged in the court.
