The Karnataka High Court on Monday (January 30) adjourned the hearings on Kambala — a buffalo race native to Karnataka that it had banned in November last year — and said that it would rule on it after the Supreme Court's verdict on Jallikattu had been delivered.
Also read: With Jallikattu back, protesters now turn out for Kambala; but what is Kambala?
It may be noted that Jallikattu — the bull-taming sport in Tamil Nadu — had been banned by the apex court in the middle of 2014 but was held for the first time since then after massive protests in the state prompted both the local and the Central governments to pass an ordinance that circumvented the ban.
A Supreme Court bench consisting of Justices Dipak Misra and Rohinton Nariman is expected to hear all petitions for and against Jallikattu on Tuesday, January 31. The Animal Welfare Board of India, on whose recommendation the Supreme Court had banned Jallikattu, has already filed a case against the controversial Jallikattu Bill.
What the Karnataka HC said
The Karnataka High Court on Monday adjourned the matter for two weeks, saying it would revisit the case after the Supreme Court had given its verdict on Jallikattu. The reason behind this could be that the HC wants to take into consideration the finer points of the SC's observations on the issue.
A division bench of Chief Justice SK Mukherjee and Justice RB Budihal of the Karnataka HC passed the order while hearing a petition filed by the India chapter of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
The Udupi District Kambala Committee and Vijay Vikram Jodukare Kambala Committee had filed interlocutory applications (IAs) in connection with the PETA India petition. They were, through the IAs, seeking to vacate the interim order by the Karnataka HC from November 22, 2016, when it had restrained people from participating in Kambala.
