A group of people participating in Jallikattu despite ban at Karisalkulam village in Madurai. (PTI)
As the chorus for an ordinance to hold the banned bull-taming sport Jallikattu this week grows louder in Tamil Nadu, animal rights groups today wrote to President Pranab Mukherjee and the Centre, arguing against any such possible move.
People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which has come under criticism from Jallikattu supporters in the state and Federation of Indian Animal Protection Organisations (FIAPO) have written to Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave in this regard, PETA said in a statement.
"In the letters, PETA and FIAPO note that Jallikattu is illegal according to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960; the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change's 2011 ban on the use of bulls in performances and a 2014 Supreme Court judgement," PETA said in a release.
"PETA also notes that issuing an ordinance to allow the spectacle may be considered unconstitutional and an inappropriate use of power," it said.
PETA also said it has written to the Tamil Nadu government, calling for the enforcement of the ban on the sport.
"If miscreants were to enter Lord Shiva's temple and desecrate Nandi's idol, people would not stand for it," PETA India CEO Poorva Joshipura said, adding "so why should we support the abuse of living bulls".
Meanwhile, FIAPO Director Varda Mehrotra said: "No culture promotes violence, least of all towards animals. Moreover, bovines have always been revered in the Indian culture."
In Chennai, a human chain was formed by students seeking nod for holding the sport.
A group of students tried to stage a 'rail roko' at Salem Railway Station but were removed by police.
In Erode, hundreds of young men participated in a two-wheeler rally demanding permission to hold Jallikattu.
In Dindigul and Arani near Tiruvannamalai, youth sported black shirts as a mark of protest and took out decorated bulls on main roads.
They held placards which said Jallikattu was "our cultural sport, our right."
Rallies were also taken out in Vellore, Madurai, Sivaganga, and Rameswaram demanding Jallikattu be allowed.
The Supreme court had outlawed Jallikattu in 2014 and a review petition of Tamil Nadu was also dismissed last December. Judgement on a matter related to the Centre's notification of last year to exempt jallikattu from the ban has been reserved by the apex court.
With Jallikattu traditionally held along with Pongal festivities, there has been a growing chorus in support of lifting the ban on the sport in the state in the past four days with people from various walks of life staging protests.