In Krishnagiri district, ‘erudhu vidum vizha’ was decided to be held near Hosur and later permission was not given for holding the same.
Yet, the festival committee repaired the empty space in that area and made all arrangements, including barricades and a stage. More than 100 bulls were brought and a large number of youths gathered to catch the bulls.
However, due to a lack of proper permission from the district administration, the bull race was banned.
Officials and police arrived on the spot and informed everyone to disperse stating that the bull race has been banned.
The youth, agitated over this, gathered on the National Highway and blocked the traffic by pelting stones on the middle of the road. A large number of government buses, trucks, cars, and other vehicles were damaged during the incident.
At least 16 police officers, including a woman, have been injured in the stone pelting by the protestors who have gathered in large numbers on the highway in Hosur.
Traffic has been halted for more than two hours and eyewitnesses have said that there is a traffic logjam for more than 5km.
The protestors threw stones at the police personnel, blocked the vehicles coming that way and climbed on them and raised slogans condemning the district administration.
Then the police resorted to lathi charge, engaged water cannons and used tear gas bombs to disperse the crowd.
In response to the protest, District Collector Jaya Chandra Bhanu Reddy granted permission to hold the event, but the protest didn’t stop there.
People stated that they should be allowed to conduct the bull race in the other places of Krishnagiri district.
Meanwhile, Superintendent of Krishnagiri Police (SP) Saroj Kumar Thakur met reporters and said,
“In Krishnagiri and Shoolagiri, some policemen were slightly injured when youths were involved in a sudden protest and attacked them. Action will be taken based on the video regarding the stone pelting incident. The reason for this issue is that they tried to conduct ‘erudhu vidum vizha’ without the government’s permission.”
During the protest, at least 15 police personnel sustained injuries as the protestors pelted stones at the government buses and police personnel.
As an aftermath of the protest, the police granted them permission to conduct the event for two hours and the crowd was later brought under control and the traffic was also regulated.
However, Superintendent of Krishnagiri Police (SP) Saroj Kumar Thakur said that the permission of the Collector is important to regulate the crowd and ensure no fatalities.
“People have a demand that they want Eru Thazhuvuthal in all places in Krishnagiri. Few people were injured and that too minor injuries. You all have to understand the simple point that there is no permission, Collector permission and GO for bull release events.
If we allow the bull event there would be death. They were not following norms. So, to regulate the crowd and ensure no deaths, we are saying that the permission of the collector is a must.
“We are saying get proper permission, if you don’t have it, we cannot allow the bull release events,” he said further.
He further said that no person has been arrested so far but around 11 vehicles have been damaged. An action would be initiated against the ones indulged in violence, he added.
The ‘Mann Kuthal’ process also takes place in which bulls are trained to develop their skills by digging their horns in the wet earth.
Bulls are prepared to attack when someone tries to catch their hump. However, the sport brings its own cons with it despite being celebrated with great enthusiasm in the state.
A minor boy, Gokul (14) of Palacodde, at the viewer’s arena, succumbed after he was gored by a raging bull at the Jallikattu event in Dharmapuri district, the officials of the district administration said on January 22.
During the final stage of the event, a bull-tamer failed to reign in his bull and the raging animal sprung out of the Vaadivasal and pierced the left abdomen of Gokul.
The officials had said that as many as 34 people were injured by bulls in Manjuvirattu events conducted in Tamil Nadu’s Sivaganga on January 19.
On January 15, at least 19 persons were grievously injured by raging bulls involved in a Jallikattu event at Avaniyapuram in Madurai.
Local people has said news agency had the collector even permission in time then the whole unwanted exercise could be avoided
Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president K Annamalai tweeted videos from the spot blaming the state’s Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
