With the Tamil Nadu state government promulgating an Ordinance to conduct the bull sport jallikattu amidst wide-spread agitations across the state, a similar movement seems to be brewing in the neighbouring state of Karnataka.
Several groups in Karnataka are now demanding that the ban on Kambala (buffalo racing), imposed by the High Court in November last year, be lifted. Kambala, like jallikattu, was banned after animal rights group PETA approached the court, citing animal cruelty in sports like bull taming and buffalo racing. In view of the SC verdict on jallikattu, the Karnataka High Court had stayed the conduct of the festival that is held in coastal Karnataka.
A petition filed by various Kambala organisers, asking that the HC stay be vacated, will be considered on January 30.
Ahead of the hearing, the Dakshina Kannada and Udupi Kambala Samiti has reportedly convened a meeting on Sunday, to discuss the fallout of the TN Ordinance, reports The Hindu.
Sitharam Shetty, a kambala organiser from Bantwal told The Hindu that the ban on Kambala should be lifted, as it was a fallout of the ban on jallikattu.
On Saturday, Minister for Large and Medium Scale Industries RV Deshpande said that there was the possibility of the state government promulgating an Ordinance, but provided that support for the Ordinance is built up in the state.
Speaking to The Times of India, PR Shetty, member of a Kambala committee said, "Kambala has been disrupted because of PETA's ill intentions. We have faith that we will get legal victory also. There is lot of difference between Kambala and Jallikattu."
A demand for the conduct of Kambala was also raised in several social media platforms.
Karnataka is not the only state that has decided to follow Tamil Nadu in demanding protection of their traditional sports. The Shiv Sena will reportedly hold protests in Maharashtra demanding that the ban on bullock cart racing be lifted. The traditional sport, which was usually conducted as part of the Pune festival during Ganesh Chaturthi, was banned by the Supreme Court in 2014.
While it’s cattle sports that are the centre of attention in TN, Karnataka and Maharashtra, it is the bulbul fight that the people of Assam are agitating for. Bulbul or nightingale fights were traditionally organised as part of the Bhogali Bihu celebrations.