NNWN / Bengaluru, 2017-02-13

First it was Tamil Nadu assembly on Jallikattu and now the Karnataka Assembly on Kambala , buffalo racing sport.  The state Assembly on Monday passed a bill to hold the buffalo-racing sport of Kambala in the state. The bill got the support from all the political parties.  Kambala is a buffalo-cart race that is organised from November to March by heads of villages in coastal Karnataka. The Karnataka High court banned it after a public interest litigation (PIL) was filed by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), India chapter in 2016. After controversy on Jallikattu in the neighbouring Tamil Nadu, protests in favour of organising Kambala gathered momentum in Karnataka soonafter that. People across Karnataka held protests to revoke the ban on Kambala. Protests got intense after politicians came out in support of the bull-racing sport. Former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa promulgated the idea of an ordinance to bring back Kambala, just like it was done in the case of Jallikattu. Current CM Siddaramaiah also said that he was in favour of bringing back the sport.  "We are for Kambala, not against it. It is a rural sport. If necessary, we will bring legislation for it," Siddaramaiah had said. The Karnataka High Court had adjourned the hearing of cases related to Kambala for two weeks on January 30 this year, saying that it would pass a judgement only after the Supreme Court's verdict on Jallikattu comes out.