Tamil Nadu: Jallikattu before the Supreme Court of India, Part One

 

This is not a jallikattu bull, but one rescued from illegal transport by Blue Cross of India.

 

By Sharon St Joan

Is the Supreme Court of India on the verge of banning jallikattu? And what is jallikattu?

With a case now before the Supreme Court, there is a chance that this cruel event, an Indian version of the running of the bulls, may be banned.

 

What is jallikattu?

Early every spring jallikattu events are held in central Tamil Nadu, in south India.

During jallikattu, the bulls are released through a gate. They then run along a corridor between two fences, required to be eight feet high, with crowds of shouting spectators held back behind the fences. In the area through which the bulls run, several hundred young men mill about, and when a bull comes running through the gate, they leap up and grab the hump of…