Three more persons were gored to death by charging bulls and 70 persons were injured, some of them critically, in Jallikattu (taming of bulls) sports held in two districts of Tamil Nadu on Tuesday in connection with the Pongal festival.
While R Solaiandi (25) was gored to death at Avaarangaduin Tiruchirappalli district, Ramanathan (45) and Kasi met their ends in Sivaganga districts. With this the number of persons who lost their lives in Jallikattu during the last two days rose to four. More than 100 people have been injured in the events held during Sunday and Monday at Madurai and Tirchirappalli.
The deadly sporting season will end only on May 31, 2018, which means Tamil Nadu is in for more such deaths and fatalities in the coming days. Officials of the Animal Welfare Board of India , entrusted with the safety of the animals and bull tamers were seen encouraging the tamers to go after the bulls.
SK Mittal, convener, AWBI, said on Monday that Jallikattu should he held for ever in Tamil Nadu and he scoffed at those who oppose the sport. Mittal joined Tamil Nadu Minister Udhayakumar and Madurai district collector K Veeraraghava Rao in inaugurating the Monday’s event at Palamedu in Madurai.
“It is like a football referee who is expected to supervise the game throwing away his whistle and start playing for one of the teams,” said an animal right activist watching the event.
But the Tuesday’s Jallikattu event held at Ananganallur in Madurai shocked the spectators as the organisers made it into an open gambling. When the bulls were forced out to the arena through the Vadivaasal (the narrow passage to the arena), the announcer declared that the person who tames the bull would get Rs 10,000.
Komban, a ferocious looking bull owned by Tamil Nadu Minister Vijaya Bhaskar, turned out to be Tuesday’s star as no tamers could come anywhere near it in spite of the announcer declaring openly through the public address system that the person who tames Komban would get Rs 10,000. There were prices ranging from Renault cars to motorcycles to refrigerators to entice the tamers. All these things happened in the presence of Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswamy and his deputy
O.Panneerselvam. The Chief Minister, his deputy, other Ministers, MPs and MlAs guarded by armed guards watched the Jallikkattu from a gallery which was beyond the reach of the bulls.
Interestingly, those who hoot for Jallikattu turned philosophical when asked whether they would allow their wards to participate in this dangerous sport.
“Jallikattu is a traditional sporting event in Tamil nadu, the pride of Tamils. But I prefer my children opt for Kabadi or Chilambattam(a rural dance form),” said R V Giri, president, Confederation of Indian Farmers Association (CIFA), an umbrell organisation of all farmers’ union in the country which demand Jallikkattu should be held every year.