Jallikattu activists fly to Delhi to meet Anil Madhav Dave

CHENNAI: Seven Jallikattu activists, including the long-time campaigner Karthikeya Sivasenapathy, left here late Thursday for New Delhi to meet Union Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave to discuss ways of overcoming the impasse caused by the Supreme Court ban on the Tamils’ sport of valour. Karthikeya, who also heads the Senaapathy Kangayam Cattle research foundation in Kuttapalayam, has been for long advocating for the need to save native breeds of cattle in the state.

“When we started fighting for the cause in 2013, there were just 13 people on the Marina Beach. There is nothing more gratifying than seeing over a lakh people coming together in support for the cause,” he said. “We will be meeting the minister for environment, forests and climate change at 10 am tomorrow in New Delhi. And I am hoping to get an appointment to meet the Prime Minister, too,” he told DC before boarding his flight on Thursday night.

The green activist of Chennai, Abdul Ghani K, who is one of those accompanying Karthikeya, said: “We are seven people going to Delhi and we hope to also create awareness on the whole issue through the national media.” Activist Karthikeya also added that they will be addressing the union minister on rectified the amendment to Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act made in 2012.  “The rectification can be made through the President’s ordinance, as that is the only thing that doesn’t come under the Supreme Court’s purview,” he said.

The group will be holding a protest at Jallikattu at Jantar Mantar, along with people from Tamil Nadu already protesting for the cause in the national capital. “The nation thinks that this protest is against the Jallikattu ban, but is not so. It is against the ban on sports in several states like Kambala in Karnataka, Ogole in Andhra Pradesh. We will be speaking to national media on the issue too, as it is about the threat to the national genetic resource and the native breeds,” he said. The group, which will be in Delhi for a couple of days, hope to meet the Prime Minster and the director of National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources.