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Man Killed After Being Attacked By Razor-Wielding Rooster At Illegal Cockfight

Man Killed After Being Attacked By Razor-Wielding Rooster At Illegal Cockfight

The animal kicked free after being placed in the ring and the man was sliced in the stomach.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

A man has been killed after he got on the wrong side of a razor-wielding rooster in India.

According to 9News, Saripalli Venkateswara Rao was a spectator watching an illegal cockfight in the state of Andhra Pradesh last week when he was attacked.

Roosters typically have weapons like razor blades attached to their limbs to help them during a brutal and often bloodied match. They're also given steroids and overfed in order to get them bigger than their potential competitors.

PA

Sadly for Venkateswara Rao, he was in the wrong place at the wrong time when a rooster kicked free after being placed in the ring.

The animal sliced the 55-year-old in the stomach and doctors were unable to save him.

Several other injuries were reported from the event but Mr Venkateswara Rao was listed as the only casualty.

Cockfighting remains prevalent in India, despite it being banned all the way back in 1960 with the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. It's still popular in Andhra Pradesh, Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts of Tulu Nadu region of Karnataka, and the state of Tamil Nadu.

But it's in Andhra Pradesh where fights to the death are most popular.

PA

Some people believe cockfighting is linked an ancient religious ritual or a sacred ceremony.

Eight years ago, police were encouraged not to break up a fight held during the Sun God Festival in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) district committee because it was part of a temple ritual. Authorities said they wouldn't interfere as long as the cockfight was held in a temple.

But if you thought cockfighting was a strange sport, wait until you hear about...cricket fighting.

Yup, cricket fights - as in those little insects, in a 'ring', fighting.

Cricket fighting dates back to the Tang dynasty - way back in 618 AD - and is still pretty popular in China today. And when we say pretty popular, we mean folks are willing to bet tens of thousands of dollars on the outcome of these 'fights'.

Like any other sport, cricket fighting isn't immune to a rogue element and police made two arrests after busting an 'underground casino' where three men were accused of illegally 'organising cricket fighting'.

A report in the New York Post claims that in just one short week, around 300 people attended the fights and $140,000 (£109,500) was bet on the little creatures.

The sport, if you can call it that, was banned during the cultural revolution in the 1960s - however, according to a report by Reuters, it's now back on the rise and younger people are getting involved with the tradition.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: World News, News