VICTORY! Following PETA India Complaint, Cruel Rekla Race Stopped in Tiruppur
When PETA India learned that a rekla (bullock cart) race was scheduled to take place on 17 February in Andiakavundanur village, near Udumalaipettai in Tiruppur district, PETA India’s emergency response team sprang into action and worked with the District Superintendent of Police and the District Collector to prevent the illegal event from being held. District police authorities served notices to the event organisers to prevent them from conducting the illegal spectacle. The district administration threatened them with legal action if they failed to comply with its notice and the 2014 order of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India, which banned bullock cart races in the country.
Shocking footage from PETA India’s investigation of illegal rekla races in Tamil Nadu in 2018 revealed rampant cruelty to bulls, even though the Supreme Court had banned bullock cart racing in 2014. Such races are also prohibited under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act, 2017. On the basis of a Right to Information request response, in which the Tamil Nadu government confirmed that rekla races are illegal in the state – as well as the 2018 investigation report on rekla races – PETA India wrote letters to the collectors and superintendents of police of all districts in Tamil Nadu in 2018 and 2019 urging them to take immediate legal action against the organisers of and participants in cruel, illegal rekla races.
PETA India’s investigation shows bulls being electroshocked, roughly pulled by their nose ropes, and beaten and jabbed with nail-tipped, pointed wooden sticks and their tails being bitten and yanked to make them run faster. Bull pairs crashed to the ground and into barricades during the races, and the animals were denied basic necessities, including food, water, and protection from the sweltering heat. In addition to causing the animals involved immense fear, pain, and distress, rekla races pose a serious threat to public safety.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0NP9obvrkA
You Can Help Bulls
Help PETA India protect bulls from this torment by urging the Tamil Nadu government to enforce the ban on violent rekla races.
