In January 2017, protests against the Supreme Court's ban on jallikattu, Tamil Nadu's bull-taming sport, spread from Alanganallur near Madurai to Chennai's Marina Beach and across the state. The state promulgated an ordinance on 21 January and passed a law on 23 January, the same day police cleared the Marina and violence, arson and allegations of police excesses followed. In May 2023 a Supreme Court Constitution Bench upheld the state law.
Key takeaways
- The January 2017 jallikattu protests began at Alanganallur in Madurai district and spread on 17 January to Chennai's Marina Beach, where a leaderless, largely youth crowd grew to more than 50,000 by 18 January.
- Tamil Nadu promulgated an ordinance on 21 January 2017 and passed the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act on 23 January, with the Centre's support.
- On 23 January 2017 police cleared the Marina; the Ice House police station and vehicles were set on fire, and videos appeared to show police burning vehicles, which the Chennai Police Commissioner called morphed.
- The Justice S. Rajeswaran Commission submitted its report in January 2020; it remains unpublished, and its author was reported in 2025 as saying police action was justified.
- In February 2021 Tamil Nadu ordered 308 protest cases against 26,460 people withdrawn, and on 18 May 2023 a Supreme Court Constitution Bench upheld the state's jallikattu law.
Background: the ban and the 2016 notification
Jallikattu is held during Pongal, the January harvest festival. Participants try to hold on to a released bull's hump. In May 2014, in Animal Welfare Board of India v. A. Nagaraja, the Supreme Court banned the sport on grounds of cruelty to bulls and held that Tamil Nadu's 2009 regulation law was repugnant to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960 The News Minute The Leaflet.
On 7 January 2016 the Union Environment Ministry issued a notification allowing bulls to be used in jallikattu. The AWBI, PETA India and other groups challenged it, and on 12 January 2016 the Supreme Court stayed it Legally India. In January 2017 the court rejected a plea for an early verdict before Pongal, and protests followed across the state Scroll.
How it started: Alanganallur
Alanganallur in Madurai district is known for its jallikattu arena. Protesters there used four temple bulls to hold the sport in defiance of the ban, and police intervened. On Tuesday, 17 January 2017, more than 500 supporters were detained at Alanganallur, ANI reported Scroll. Other outlets gave lower figures.
The demonstration at the Marina began on the morning of 17 January, after news of the arrests in Alanganallur. Hundreds of students sat through the night after talks with two state ministers failed The Peninsula.
The Marina protest
The Marina gathering grew from a few thousand people on 17 January to more than 50,000 on 18 January: students, teachers, software workers and homemakers. Politicians were kept away, and the protest was described as apolitical and leaderless Newslaundry. It was largely organised on social media and lasted a week. Scroll. It came to be called the "Marina Puratchi" (Marina Revolution) The Federal.
Police said the protests across the state were largely peaceful. Authorities closed about two dozen colleges in Chennai as the crowds grew Al Jazeera. Volunteers handed out food and water and cleaned the beach The News Minute. Protesters also demanded a ban on PETA The Peninsula. In Salem, where a train was held by protesters for five days, a youth died of electrocution while protesting on top of it Deccan Chronicle.
We are here in support of preserving the culture of Tamils.
Selva Kumar, student leader at the protest, to AFP, 19 January 2017 (Al Jazeera)
Where each side stood
Centre's position Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 19 January and asked for an ordinance. The PMO said that "while appreciating the cultural significance of Jallikattu, the Prime Minister observed that the matter is presently sub-judice" and that "the Centre would be supportive of steps taken by the State Government" PMO Tribune. The Home Ministry then cleared the state's ordinance. On 24 January the Centre told the Supreme Court it would seek to withdraw its 2016 notification The News Minute.
State government's position The state's ordinance of 21 January, replaced on 23 January by the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act, says jallikattu plays "a pivotal role in preserving and promoting the culture and tradition" of the state and is vital for the "survival and continuance" of native bull breeds The News Minute.
PETA India said on 23 January that jallikattu involved liquoring up "terrified bulls", breaking joints in their tails and rubbing chilli into their eyes. It said two young men had been killed at one event that weekend and compared the sport to fox hunting and bullfighting PETA. Organisers denied that the animals were harmed Al Jazeera.
Animal Welfare Board of India: the statutory board had brought the 2014 case. After the new law passed, board member Anjali Sharma filed an application against it in the Supreme Court. On 25 January the board's secretary, M. Ravi Kumar, wrote that any such petition filed on behalf of the AWBI "may be withdrawn immediately". Sharma said she was authorised and would press it as an individual petitioner LiveLaw The News Minute.
Timeline
Alanganallur detentions
More than 500 detained on 17 January, per ANI; the Marina protest begins Scroll.
Marina swells
More than 50,000 at the beach Newslaundry.
CM meets PM
Modi calls the matter sub judice but promises support PMO.
Ordinance
The Governor promulgates the state ordinance The News Minute.
Events resume
Two men are gored to death at Rapoosal; protesters stay on, demanding a permanent law PTI via Gulf News.
Eviction, violence, Act passed
Police clear the Marina from about 6am; Ice House police station is set on fire; the Assembly passes the Bill unanimously Down To Earth The News Minute.
NHRC notice
The NHRC takes suo motu cognizance of alleged police excesses SCC Online.
Inquiry announced
A commission under a retired High Court judge PTI via Business Standard.
23 January: eviction, arson and the police videos
A standoff began at about 6am as police moved to clear the beach Down To Earth. Police moved to clear nearly 7,000 protesters; about 2,000 formed a human chain at the shore and threatened to jump into the sea. Police said protesters threw sand and water packets and that they used "mild force"; one protester said police used tear gas and batons PTI via Gulf News Asia Times.
Near the Parthasarathy temple arch, about 50 protesters set the Ice House police station on fire after clashing with police, and about 15 bikes outside it burned. At least 22 policemen were injured by stone-pelting. Petrol bombs were thrown at Presidency College Down To Earth. The News Minute reported the vehicles outside the station were set on fire by "unidentified persons" The News Minute.
Claim · Residents In the fishing hamlet of Nadukuppam, near the beach, residents said police went door to door looking for protesters, broke doors, beat men and burned their fish market. One fish seller alleged more than 600 shops were burnt. Residents said police blamed them for the fire The News Minute.
Claim · Contested video A video shared widely on WhatsApp appeared to show a man in khaki throwing a burning bundle into an autorickshaw. Police Commissioner S. George called the first video "ridiculous", said it had been morphed and would be examined by the multimedia department The News Minute via The Quint.
Both accounts
Protesters' and rights bodies' account
Lawyers told the Madras High Court the protests were peaceful and asked who ordered the eviction, the lathi-charge and the deployment of over 15,000 police. They sought a CBI probe and submitted videos they said showed police instigating violence The News Minute. On 24 January the NHRC, citing media reports, said the protest "was peaceful" and that television visuals showed police setting huts, autos and motorcycles on fire. It called "unprovoked police action" a human rights violation and sought reports within two weeks SCC Online. Protesters said the violence was the work of fringe elements who joined the agitation, and that people not involved were booked The Federal.
Police and government account
Commissioner George said over 4,000 people left after being assured the ordinance was a permanent solution. He said "a group of anti-social elements" then threw stones and "minimum force was used", and that 40 "miscreants" had been arrested The News Minute via The Quint. On 27 January Panneerselvam told the Assembly that "terror outfits, anti-national forces" had infiltrated the protest, and that some protesters carried posters of Osama bin Laden. He said police used minimum force, and that action would be taken against police found guilty of arson IANS via Business Standard.
The Rajeswaran Commission
On 31 January 2017 Panneerselvam announced a three-month inquiry by a retired High Court judge PTI via Business Standard. Justice S. Rajeswaran, a retired Madras High Court judge, started work in February 2017. His brief: whether police committed excesses, what action to take, and damage to property Deccan Chronicle.
After several extensions, the commission submitted its report in January 2020, having examined 1,901 people DT Next. It has not been published. Justice Rajeswaran told The Federal that only the government could explain why The Federal.
Claim · Justice Rajeswaran In January 2025 the Sri Lanka Guardian, citing an interview he gave Frontline, reported that the roughly 950-page report found police action justified. It said "undesirable elements" had taken over the protest after the ordinance, and urged sympathy for arrested youths aged 18 to 23. Since the report is unpublished, this cannot be checked against the text Sri Lanka Guardian.
Arrests and case withdrawals
By 27 January, 215 people had been arrested and 66 cases registered in Chennai, and 146 arrested elsewhere, the Chief Minister said IANS via Business Standard. In Madurai, 179 protesters were charged, 64 of them from Alanganallur under the attempt-to-murder section, IPC 307. Their lawyer said in 2021 the charges blocked some from jobs and passports The Federal.
On 5 February 2021 the Chief Minister told the Assembly that all protest cases would be withdrawn except those involving damage to police vehicles or attacks on police. A government order on 20 February 2021 covered 308 cases against 26,460 people: 281 under investigation and 27 pending trial. The News Minute The Quint.
The 2023 Supreme Court ruling
On 18 May 2023, Justices K.M. Joseph, Ajay Rastogi, Aniruddha Bose, Hrishikesh Roy and C.T. Ravikumar upheld the Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra amendments Bar and Bench. The court held the Act was not colourable legislation and that, with its rules, it "substantially reduces the pain and suffering" of bulls. Whether jallikattu is part of Tamil cultural heritage, it said, was for the legislature, not the courts. SCC Online.
PETA India's Poorvi Joshipura said the verdict "makes our country look regressive in the eyes of the world". She said "at least 104 men and children and 33 bulls have died" since 2017 AP via Gulf News. PETA then filed a review petition Bar and Bench.
Outcome
- Law: Ordinance on 21 January 2017; Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act passed on 23 January; upheld by the Supreme Court on 18 May 2023.
- Deaths: A youth electrocuted on a train in Salem; two men gored at a resumed jallikattu event on 22 January.
- Injuries: At least 22 policemen on 23 January, per Down To Earth; protester injuries not fully counted.
- Arrests: 361 by 27 January, per the Chief Minister.
- Cases: 308 cases against 26,460 people ordered withdrawn in February 2021, with exceptions.
- Inquiry: Rajeswaran Commission report submitted in January 2020, still unpublished in the reporting reviewed.
What is still pending
The Rajeswaran report is unpublished, so its findings on the police videos and the Nadukuppam fire are known only through its author's comments. No outcome of the NHRC notices or the police examination of the video was found. Cases of attacks on police were excluded from the withdrawal. PETA's review petition against the 2023 ruling was not reported as decided in the sources reviewed.
Questions people ask
Why did the 2017 jallikattu protests start?
The Supreme Court banned jallikattu in 2014 and stayed the Centre's 2016 notification allowing it. Detentions at Alanganallur before Pongal 2017 set off protests that spread to the Marina and across the state.
What happened at Ice House police station?
On 23 January 2017, after police cleared the Marina, a group set fire to the Ice House police station and about 15 bikes outside it, Down To Earth reported.
Did police set vehicles on fire?
Videos appeared to show police setting fire to vehicles, and the NHRC cited TV visuals of this. The Chennai Police Commissioner said the main video was morphed. The inquiry report that might settle this has not been published.
Were the jallikattu protest cases withdrawn?
Most were. In February 2021 the state ordered 308 cases against 26,460 people withdrawn, excluding cases of attacks on police or damage to police vehicles.
Is jallikattu legal now?
Yes. On 18 May 2023 a five-judge Supreme Court bench upheld the 2017 Tamil Nadu amendment Act.
Sources
- The Leaflet: Supreme Court reserves judgment on Jallikattu: what has happened so far?, 21 Dec 2022
- Legally India: SC stops Centre's restart of jallikattu, 12 Jan 2016
- Scroll: Jallikattu ban: more than 500 supporters detained in Madurai, 17 Jan 2017
- The Peninsula: Jallikattu: Tamil Nadu's Arab Spring enters third day, 19 Jan 2017
- Newslaundry: Jallikattu ban is the last straw on the Tamilian back, 19 Jan 2017
- Al Jazeera: Protests flare in southern India over Jallikattu ban, 19 Jan 2017
- PMO: CM of Tamil Nadu calls on PM, 19 Jan 2017
- Tribune: Sub-judice, can't act: PM on Jallikattu, 20 Jan 2017
- The News Minute: The humans of jallikattu at the Marina, 21 Jan 2017
- PETA: Statement re Jallikattu, 23 Jan 2017
- Down To Earth: Tamil Nadu on boil as pro-Jallikattu protesters clash with police, 23 Jan 2017
- Gulf News (PTI): Protests take violent turn in Chennai, 23 Jan 2017
- Asia Times: Jallikattu protesters torch police station as row rumbles on, 23 Jan 2017
- The News Minute: Jallikattu is fully legal: TN passes Bill revoking ban, 23 Jan 2017
- The News Minute: A fishing hamlet in Chennai alleges police burnt their fish market, 23 Jan 2017
- The Quint (The News Minute): Video of arson by policemen morphed, says Chennai cop, 24 Jan 2017
- SCC Online: NHRC takes suo motu cognizance of police excesses on Jallikattu protestors, Jan 2017
- The News Minute: Animal Welfare Board of India takes back petition challenging TN jallikattu law, 26 Jan 2017
- LiveLaw: Animal Welfare Board secy, counsel lock horns on Jallikattu plea in SC, 26 Jan 2017
- Business Standard (IANS): Panneerselvam promises action against police if found guilty, 27 Jan 2017
- The News Minute: Chennai police faces heat at Madras HC over Marina crackdown, 31 Jan 2017
- Business Standard (PTI): TN CM announces probe into violence during pro-Jallikattu stir, 31 Jan 2017
- Deccan Chronicle: Jallikattu protest: Justice Rajeswaran begins probe, 17 Feb 2017
- Scroll: Jallikattu protests impact a year on, Jan 2018
- DT Next: Panel submits report on jallikattu violence, 21 Jan 2020
- The Federal: Jallikattu rages on but for booked protestors, life looks trampled down, 14 Jan 2021
- The News Minute: TN govt issues order to withdraw cases against 26,460 persons, 20 Feb 2021
- The Quint: Tamil Nadu govt to withdraw 308 cases, 20 Feb 2021
- Bar and Bench: Supreme Court permits Jallikattu, upholds Tamil Nadu amendments, 18 May 2023
- SCC Online: Constitution Bench holds Jallikattu, Kambala and bull-cart racing legal, 18 May 2023
- Gulf News (AP): India's top court allows bull-taming sport to continue, May 2023
- Bar and Bench: PETA files review petition against Jallikattu verdict, 2023
- Sri Lanka Guardian: Commission justifies police actions in 2017 Jallikattu protests, 22 Jan 2025