THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary- November 19, 2016- Topic 2
It is no surprise that the Supreme
Court has declined to review its 2014 judgment banning jallikattu, the popular bull-taming sport held alongside annual
harvest festivities in rural Tamil Nadu. The original judgment had drawn on
sound legal principles to conclude that the need to prevent cruelty to animals
overrides the consideration that conducting the sport was necessary to preserve
culture and tradition. More particularly, the court had found that a 2009 State
law that sought to regulate jallikattu was repugnant to the 1960 central
legislation to prevent cruelty towards animals. The former Act did contain
stringent provisions, but animal rights activists contended that the element of
cruelty could not be eliminated altogether. Despite evidence that the game
caused distress and pain to the animals, and even led to injuries and
occasional fatalities, political leaders in the State and sections of the
public often make the claim that jallikattu has cultural and religious
significance for the Tamil community. Jallikattu is construed as a macho sport
in which intrepid young men demonstrate their valour by pouncing on fleeing
bulls. It is also associated in the popular imagination with cultural pride.
Over the years, the tradition was kept alive in many villages under the belief
that not conducting jallikattu would invite divine wrath. As a result, the
bull-baiting sport was invested with religious significance too.
It was unlikely that the
court would have entertained a review merely on a claim that popular sentiment
favoured the conduct of jallikattu and that its purported religious and
cultural significance would provide constitutional protection to it. The Bench
has rejected attempts to invoke the right of religious freedom guaranteed in
Article 25 of the Constitution. It was unfathomable that there could be a
connection between jallikattu and religious freedom, the court said. And it was
held mainly for human entertainment at the expense of the animal. Apart from
the State government’s review plea, the Centre had embarked on a misadventure
in January by issuing a notification aimed at permitting jallikattu. The action
was stayed immediately and a verdict on its validity is expected to come
separately. However, given that the court is sticking to the stand that it
would not allow any cruelty in the name of holding a rural sport, it is
unlikely to survive judicial scrutiny. The Tamil Nadu government and
like-minded sections at the Centre would do well to accept this ruling as final
and stop espousing the cause. If there is one takeaway here, it is the futility
of pursuing measures to preserve feudal traditions in the teeth of reasoned
judicial opinion.
Vocabulary
Harvest: the process or period of gathering in crops.
Example: Helping with the harvest
Synonyms: harvesting, reaping, picking, collecting
Preserve: food made with fruit preserved in sugar, such as jam or marmalade.
Example: Home-made preserves
Synonyms: jam, jelly, marmalade, conserve, fruit
spread
Repugnant: extremely distasteful; unacceptable.
Example: The thought of going back into the fog was repugnant to him
Synonyms: abhorrent, revolting, repulsive, repellent, disgusting, offensive
Stringent: (of regulations, requirements, or conditions) strict, precise, and
exacting.
Example: California's air pollution guidelines are stringent
Synonyms: strict, firm, rigid, rigorous, severe, harsh, tough, tight
Fatalities: an occurrence of death by accident, in war, or from disease.
Example: Shooting was heard and there were fatalities
Synonyms: death, casualty, mortality, victim, fatal
accident
Valour: great courage in the face of danger, especially in battle.
Example: The medals are awarded for acts of valor
Synonyms: bravery, courage, pluck, nerve, daring, fearlessness
Wrath: extreme anger (chiefly used for humorous or rhetorical effect).
Example: He hid his pipe for fear of incurring his father's wrath
Synonyms: anger, rage, fury, outrage, spleen, vexation
Unfathomable: incapable of being fully explored or understood.
Example: Her gray eyes were dark with some unfathomable emotion
Synonyms: inscrutable, incomprehensible, enigmatic, indecipherable
Embarked: go on board a ship, aircraft, or other vehicle.
Example: He embarked for India in 1817
Synonyms: board ship, go on
board, go aboard, hop on, jump on
Espousing: adopt or support (a cause, belief, or way of life).
Example: He turned his back on the modernism he had espoused in his youth
Synonyms: adopt, embrace, take
up, accept, welcome, support, back