New Delhi: The Supreme Court today refused to permit the traditional Jallikattu or bull fight during the harvest festival of Pongal in Tamil Nadu saying it was "barbaric" and "inhumane".

"We cannot continue with such event if it is barbaric .... We cannot allow any event involving cruelty towards the animals," a Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan said, rejecting a plea by Tamil Nadu Government to vacate the stay ordered by it on the event on July 27 last year.

"We are not inclined to vacate the stay ordered by the this court on the event," the Bench, also comprising Justices R V Raveendran and J M Panchal, said. "Make it (Jallikattu) more humane and civilized," it observed. However, the Bench allowed the Rekla race involving bullock carts under the supervision of authorities.

State counsel T R Andhyarujina's submission that Jallikattu was a 400-year-old event and sentiments of people were attached to it failed to convince the court.

The state government's claim that no untoward incident had taken place during last year event was countered by senior advocate K K Venugopal, who was appearing for the Animal Welfare Board of India that had challenged the Madras High Court order lifting the ban imposed by its single-judge Bench.

"Can Tamil Nadu Government assure that nobody would be injured in the event? Can the DGP give an undertaking that no one will be injured? Let him file an affidavit on it," the Bench said. 

Andhyarujina said it was impossible to give such an assurance as some degree of injury was bound to occur. He cited sporting events on the ocassion of Janmasthmi in Maharashtra in ed: "There is no cruelty element involved relating to animals".

Venugopal, who was ready with a laptop with a CD of the last year's event, countered the claim of the state government. Andhyarujina's submission that a massive arrangement had been made by the state government by putting up barricades to prevent spectators from coming into the playing arena was not accepted by the Bench.

The state government had submitted that proper guidelines have been laid down by the authorities for holding the event in 12 out of 31 districts of the state and the apex court could monitor the event this year before deciding on the ban.

Realising that the Bench was not convinced, the state government sought that the event be allowed to go on at least in one of the districts. Other lawyers, who were representing a village community, interfered during the hearing and submitted that "we should be allowed to hold such event as we
are entitled for every thing which is not prohibited in law".

Anguished with this submission, the CJI said "under which law you are saying that it is permitted. It is not permitted under any law and there should not be any confrontation between bulls and human". "Why has the Animal Welfare Board of India come to the court if it is not cruelty towards the animals," the Bench observed.

Source : Agencies