Uphold the ban on Jallikattu, urges Vidya Balan & Virat Kohli

Chennai

The celebrities have signed a petition by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) calling on the government to uphold the ban, the animal rights advocacy group said in a release.

The petition recalled the Supreme Court banning Jallikattu, bullfights, bull races and other uses of bulls in performances last year but said that Central government was reportedly planning to amend The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960, to allow these 'cruel spectacles' to take place once again.

During Jallikattu, terrified bulls were "deliberately" disoriented, chased, kicked, punched, jumped on, dragged to the ground and stabbed, the petition alleged, adding people, including spectators, have been seriously injured and even killed in these events.

"For the sake of animal welfare and human safety, we, the undersigned, urge the government to keep bulls protected by upholding the ban on Jallikattu, bullfights, bull races and other uses of bulls in performances," the signatories said in the petition.

Those who had signed the petition were actors Vidya Balan, John Abraham, Sonu Sood, Vidyut Jammwal, Sonakshi Sinha, Jacqueline Fernandez, Bipasha Basu, Raveena Tandon-Thadani, Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Kapil Sharma, Amy Jackson, Athiya Shetty and Richa Chadha.

Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan have also signed the petition.