Jallikattu protest: Panneerselvam assures action against police if found guilty

Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], Jan. 31 (ANI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam on Tuesday assured strict action against the police if it is proved that they resorted to atrocity during the protests on bull-taming sport Jallikattu. Panneerselvam said if visuals of the police torching vehicles and huts are proven true then they would be punished severally. "A new investigation commission headed by a former high court judge will set up to inquire about the violence and police excesses and it will submit its report within a week," he added. The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister further said that steps are being taken to release 21 students from Chennai and 15 students from other districts arrested during the violence. Panneerselvam earlier on January 27 said various "anti-social elements" and organisations had "infiltrated" the week-long pro-jallikattu protest at Marina Beach with the intention of "diverting" it. He promised that the "evil forces" behind the violence would be identified and brought to book. The Supreme Court earlier in the day heard a batch of petitions by animal rights groups challenging the validity of a Tamil Nadu law permitting Jallikattu. Anjali Sharma, the lawyer for Animal Welfare Board of India, today filed an affidavit in the apex court, mentioning that she had filed her reply to the charges levelled by G.S. Mani, who is an intervener in the case. There was widespread agitation in Tamil Nadu, including protests at Chennai's Marina Beach in support of Jallikattu. (ANI)