Chennai: The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu, AIADMK and the BJP on Thursday claimed credit after the Supreme Court allowed the state to conduct the bull-taming sport, Jallikattu.
A five-member constitution bench headed by Justice K.M. Joseph said it will not disrupt the view of the legislature since it has taken a view that the sport is part of the cultural heritage of the state.
The apex court said when the legislature has declared that Jallikattu is part of the cultural heritage of Tamil Nadu, the judiciary cannot take a different view and stressed that the legislature is best suited to decide that.
The bench also said that the traditional bull-taming sport has been going on in Tamil Nadu for the last century.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, in a tweet, said that the verdict of the five-member bench of the Supreme Court was historic.
Stalin also said that a big Jalikkattu ground was being built in Aringanallur.
“Let us celebrate Jallikattu in a big way during the next Pongal,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Law Minister S. Reghupathy in a statement on Thursday said that bulls are not subjected to cruelty, adding the Tamil Nadu government was ensuring the safety of the bulls.
He also said that the five-member bench of the Supreme Court was unanimous in the verdict and the Tamil Nadu government had engaged the best lawyers to appear for the case and had put forth the arguments effectively.
AIADMK leader and former minister, C. Vijayabhaskar told the media here that the ban on Jallikattu was imposed by the previous UPA government in 2011.
He said that the ordinance for resuming Jallikattu was promulgated during the AIADMK regime and Jallikattu resumed in the state after three years.
He also said that the AIADMK government had taken sustained efforts before the Supreme Court for resuming Jallikattu.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu unit BJP president, K. Annamalai, welcoming the verdict of the apex court, said: “On behalf of the BJP’s state unit and the people of Tamil Nadu, we thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his persistent effort to ensure the ban on the cultural sport of TN, Jallikattu was lifted in its entirety.”
He also said that it was the previous UPA government headed by the Congress that had banned the Jallikattu.
Annamalai said the efforts of the BJP and the NDA government led to the lifting of the ban in Tamil Nadu.
Former Tamil Nadu chief minister O. Panneerselvam in a statement recalled the efforts put by him as “Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to resume the sport of Jallikattu when there were huge protests in the state”.
Meanwhile, a bull tamer and organiser of Jallikattu in Madurai area, Veerapandi (42) told IANS: “Jallikattu is the traditional sport of Tamil Nadu. It is connected with our culture. We are an agrarian economy and the bull is the symbol of our farming culture. We are not causing harm to bulls and no cruel treatment is meted out to these animals. On behalf of lakhs of Jallikattu lovers, I welcome the Supreme Court ruling.”
–IANS