THE SUPREME Court had in December last reserved its judgment on a clutch of petitions that challenged the central government’s notification allowing bulls to be used in Tamil Nadu’s Jallikattu.

As an interim order, a bench led by Justice Dipak Misra had on January 13, 2016 stayed the Centre’s notification, due to which the apex court’s original order of 2014 banning Jallikattu is still in force. The government had sought to bypass the 2014 judgment by bringing a new notification in January 2016.

Questioning the “necessity of such festivals”, the bench had restrained the Tamil Nadu government from conducting Jallikattu. “What is the necessity of such festivals… like Jallikattu? There was no festival for four years… as an interim measure, we direct that there shall be stay of notification dated January 7, 2016 issued by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, until further orders,” the court had said in its interim order.

Representing the Centre, Attorney General MukulRohatgi had sought to defend the notification by arguing that the apex court had not totally prohibited the participation of bulls in Jallikattu but only desired that care is taken so that bulls are not treated with cruelty. He raised questions over the maintainability of the petitions by animal rights groups. But the bench replied it would not entertain such an argument since such petitions had been entertained in the past.

While Rohatgi argued Jallikattu is not like bull fighting in Spain and that conditions have been provided in the notification so that cruelty to participating animals is avoided, the bench noted the real issue should be at what stage can it be made sure that harm to animals is completely avoided. The interim order was issued on a batch of petitions moved by the Animal Welfare Board of India, PETA and other animal rights groups.