SC upholds validity of Jallikattu

What’s in today’s article?

• Why in news?
• What is Jallikattu?
• Importance of Jallikattu
• Background of the case:
• News Summary: SC upholds validity of Jallikattu
• What did the court hold?

 

Why in news?

• A five-judge Bench of the Supreme Court upheld the amendments made by the legislatures of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Karnataka to The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960.
• The amendments allowed bull-taming sports like jallikattu, kambala, and bullock-cart races.

 

What is Jallikattu?

• Jallikattu, also known as eruthazhuvuthal, is a bull-taming sport traditionally played in Tamil Nadu as part of the Pongal harvest festival.
• The festival is a celebration of nature, and thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest, of which cattle-worship is part.
• It is popular in Madurai, Tiruchirappalli, Theni, Pudukkottai and Dindigul districts — known as the Jallikattu belt.
• The practice of jallikattu has long been contested, with animal rights groups and the courts expressing concern over:
  • cruelty to animals and
  • the bloody and dangerous nature of the sport that sometimes causes death and injuries to both the bulls and human participants.

 

Importance of Jallikattu

• Old cultural tradition
  • A tradition over 2,000 years old, Jallikattu is a competitive sport as well as an event to honour bull owners who rear them for mating.
  • It is a violent sport in which contestants try to tame a bull for a prize; if they fail, the bull owner wins the prize.
• Way to protect these male animals
  • Conservationists and peasants argue that Jallikattu is a way to protect these male animals which are otherwise used only for meat if not for ploughing.
  • This becomes significant at a time when cattle breeding is increasingly becoming an artificial process.

 

Background of the case:

• 2014 judgement of Supreme Court
  • In 2014, a two-judge Bench of apex court had essentially outlawed two common sports practised in the States of Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.
    • These were referred to as Jallikattu and Bullock Cart Race respectively.
  • The ruling also held that bovine sports were contrary to the provisions of Sections 3, 11(1)(a) and (m) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.
    • These sections relate to the duties of persons having charge of animals and define animal cruelty respectively.
• Jallikattu protests in Tamil Nadu
  • In 2015, the apex court also dismissed the Tamil Nadu government’s plea calling for a recall of its verdict.
    • Dismissing the government's plea, SC brushed aside the state government's argument that the 3,500-year-old tradition was rooted in religion.
  • In January 2017, massive protests erupted across Tamil Nadu against the ban, with Chennai city witnessing a 15-day-long Jallikattu uprising.
• 2016 notification by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) allowing Jallikattu
  • In January 2016, a notification was issued by the MoEF&CC prohibiting the exhibition or training of bulls as performing animals.
  • However, an exception was carved in the notification.
    • The exception specified that bulls might still be trained as performing animals at events such as Jallikattu in Tamil Nadu, according to the customs and culture of different communities.
  • A batch of petitions were filed challenging the exemption notification, relying on the 2014 ruling.
• Tamil Nadu Assembly passes bill in 2017
  • The Tamil Nadu Assembly, in 2017, passed a bill replacing an ordinance for conducting the bull-taming sport.
    • The "Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act 2017" was passed in this regard.
    • The act said the "Government of Tamil Nadu has decided to exempt Jallikattu from the provisions of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act”.
• Petitions challenging the bill
  • The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) and the Compassion Unlimited Plus Action (CUPA) filed some petitions.
  • These petitions challenged the amendment to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal Act passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly.
  • SC refused to stay the new Jallikattu law passed by the Assembly but slammed the state government for not following the law and order.
• Matter transferred to larger bench
  • In 2018, a two-judge bench referred the petitions challenging the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act, 2017 to a larger bench.
  • The bench framed five questions to be adjudicated upon by the larger bench.

 

News Summary: SC upholds validity of Jallikattu

• While delivering its verdict for a batch of pleas challenging Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra laws allowing the traditional bull-taming sport Jallikattu, the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the laws.

 

What did the court hold?

• Tamil Nadu Amendment Act is not a piece of colourable legislation
  • The top court held that the Tamil Nadu Amendment Act is not a piece of colourable legislation.
    • Colourable legislation refers to a term used in constitutional law to describe legislation that appears to be valid and within the scope of a government's authority, but is actually intended to circumvent or violate constitutional limitations.
  • It relates to Entry 17 of List III of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution which relates to the prevention of cruelty to animals.
• Observations regarding 2017 amendment
  • The 2017 amendment “minimises cruelty to animals in the concerned sports”.
  • Once it is implemented and read with the rules, the sports will not come under the definition of cruelty defined in the 1960 Act.
  • The amendment has received Presidential assent; hence, there is no flaw in the state action.
• Jallikattu has historical context
  • As per the legislatures of Tamil Nadu, Jallikattu has been going on in Tamil Nadu for the last few centuries and forms a part of its cultural heritage.
  • In this context, the court clarified that it did not want to disrupt the legislature’s view.
• 2017 amendment does not violate Fundamental duties and Fundamental Rights
  • The court also said that the 2017 amendment does not violate Articles 51-A (g) and 51-A (h).
    • 51-A (g) impose duties on Indian citizens to protect the environment.
    • 51-A (h) deals with developing a scientific temper, humanism, spirit of inquiry, and reform.
  • It also held that the amendment didn’t violate Articles 14 (Right to Equality) and 21 (Right to Life) of the Constitution.

 

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Q1) What is Kambala?

Kambala is a traditional buffalo race that originated in the coastal regions of Karnataka, a state in southern India. It is a popular rural sport that has been practiced for centuries and is associated with the farming and fishing communities of the region. Kambala takes place in slushy, paddy fields, where pairs of buffaloes are made to run in a track marked with a muddy field. The buffaloes are usually driven by a handler known as a "Kambala jockey." The jockey stands on a wooden plank and holds onto a plow-like implement as the buffaloes race forward. The sport is not a competitive event between multiple jockeys but rather a demonstration of the speed and strength of the buffaloes.

 

Q2) What is Pongal harvest festival?

Pongal is a traditional harvest festival celebrated primarily in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is one of the most important and widely observed festivals in the region and is typically celebrated in mid-January, marking the end of the winter solstice and the beginning of the harvest season. The festival is named after the dish "Pongal," which is a special sweet rice dish prepared during the festivities. Pongal is derived from the Tamil word "pongal," which means "to boil" or "overflow," signifying abundance and prosperity.

 

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Source: Supreme Court upholds Tamil Nadu law allowing jallikattu: What is this decade-old case? | Indian Express | India Today