Opinion divided on conduct of rekla races

Tamil Nadu Rekla Club president R S Thirumugam said that Karthikeya Sivasenapathy of Senaapathy Kangayam Cattle Research Foundation, Jallikattu Peravai president P Rajasekhar and others who are striving hard to protect these two cultural sports (jallikattu and rekla) have appealed to the students to end the protest. 

“They have been camping in Delhi over the last two days. They spoke to me over phone when the protest began in Coimbatore on Sunday. They said that efforts are underway to conduct the sport and thanked students for their massive protests and support. I passed it on to the protesters,” he said and felt that persons with vested interests have entered the protests and are misguiding the students. 

On the other hand, a few rekla organisers in rural Coimbatore claimed that TNRC was not a registered body and that the key persons in it including its president were attached to the ruling AIADMK. “More than 300 pairs could have come here on Sunday but we were not in support of the race,” one of the main organisers A Kalimuthurajan (52) told reporters. 

“We gave an assurance to the student protesters that we will celebrate victory and organise the race only when they concluded their protest and returned home. But they are still protesting,” he added. 

Despite opposition for the rekla race conducted by the state government with the support of the TNRC in Coimbatore, Minister for Municipal Administration S P Velumani claimed that the event was a success. 

“Henceforth rekla races will be conducted in the rural areas of Coimbatore and nearby districts as they were before the ban. On Sunday we kick-started the inaugural of the first of those races,” the Minister told DTNext and attributed the role of the student protesters in making it possible. “It would not have been possible without the efforts taken by the Chief Minister too,” he stated.