Assisting a bull owner alone does not disqualify a Jallikattu attendee from spectator coverage.

The petitioner’s son, Muthumanikandan, accompanied his friend, the bull’s owner, to assist him and watch a Jallikattu event at Ayyampatti.

He was attacked by a bull near the Vaadivasal on 12 March 2023, sustained injuries, and died on 14 March 2023.

An FIR was registered under Section 174 CrPC.

The petitioner sought compensation under the State-arranged insurance policy covering spectators and audience members.

The insurer rejected the claim on 10 January 2025, treating the deceased as a participant rather than a spectator.

The petitioner then sought relief under Article 226 of the Constitution.

Whether the insurer’s finding that the deceased was a bull tamer/cowboy, and therefore excluded from spectator coverage, was supported by the record

Whether the petitioner was entitled to compensation under the insurance policy for the deceased’s death

Article 226 of the Constitution empowers the High Court to grant appropriate writ relief.

Under Clause 6 of the insurance policy obtained by the State, coverage extended to audience members and spectators attending the Jallikattu event but not to bull tamers or cowboys.

A claim cannot be rejected on the basis that the deceased fell within an excluded category where that classification is unsupported by the material on record.

The FIR indicated that the deceased had accompanied the bull’s owner to assist him and watch the event, but the record contained no material establishing that he had acted as a bull tamer or cowboy.

The Court held that accompanying the owner to assist him did not, by itself, establish participation as a bull tamer.

The available evidence instead prima facie showed that the deceased was present as a spectator.

The insurer’s rejection on the contrary basis was therefore unsustainable.

directed the eighth respondent, Oriental Insurance Company Limited, to pay the petitioner ₹5,00,000 within six weeks of receiving the order.

If payment was not made within that period, the amount would carry interest at 6% per annum from the date of the claim until payment.

The writ petition was allowed with no order as to costs.