By Samhati Mahapatra

In an interview to TOI, Peta India ’s CEO Poorva Joshipura says the new Tamil Nadu jallikattu law is incapable of doing away with the inherent cruelty in the bull sport.Was there any change in the way jallikattu was held in the state after the ordinance was passed?The fact that many people and bulls were killed and injured during jallikattu events across the state this year proved that no law is going to change the fact that the sport is inherently cruel.For six years until the SC’s ban on jallikattu in 2014, 43 people had died, 5,000 were injured and numerous bulls were killed in jallikattu events across the state. This time too we witnessed exactly the same thing. The men continued to pounce on the bull the same way, breaking and twisting its tail and the bull appeared to display the same degree of terror when tortured in the arena. Nothing has changed.Two bull tamers died and hundreds were injured at an event at Rapoosal village in Pudukottai district. Were rules mentioned in the ordinance to protect bulls adhered to in these events?Rules are insufficient either to protect people or bulls. At the end of the day both are hurt. Rules mentioned in the ordinance were nothing new. Similar rules were mentioned in the Tamil Nadu Jallikattu Regulation Act, 2009 (until it was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2014), but were never followed.Did PETA workers monitor the bull sport in districts where it was held? What are the things that went wrong?You need not monitor the sport to gauge the level of violence it induces. Switch on any news channel and you can see it for yourself. Bulls are not predators. They are animals of prey. They have a natural nervousness, which is for survival purposes. In jallikattu, humans exploit this natural nervousness. If you watch the bull being brought out of its enclosure, you will find that it doesn’t want to come out to the arena. It is this fear that makes it slam into things and break bones. The whole premise of jallikattu is to frighten the bull.What is your opinion on the Tamil Nadu government’s ordinance that exempted jallikattu from the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act?Just like the Tamil Nadu Jallikattu Regulation Act, 2009 which was struck down by the apex court for violating provisions of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 I think the current ordinance awaits a similar fate. Under the act, it is illegal to cause unnecessary pain or suffering to animals and involve them in fights.Why hasn’t PETA India moved court challenging the ordinance yet?We needed to observe the conduct of jallikattu this year before taking a call. We will file a petition soon.