Raised on the roof: Karachi’s sacrificial bulls

A sacrificial bull, with Pakistani flags fastened to its horns, is lifted down by crane from the roof of a four-story building in Karachi’s Nazimabad neighborhood on Sunday, August 12, 2018. (AN photo M.F.Sabir)

Ajaz Hasan poses with one of his bulls before it is lifted to the ground by crane on Sunday, August 12, 2018. (AN photo M.F.Sabir)

A belt is fastened around one of the bulls before it is lifted down from the rooftop of a four-story building in Karachi’s Nazimabad neighborhood on Sunday, August 12, 2018. (AN photo M.F.Sabir)

A crowd looks on as a sacrificial bull, with Pakistani flags fastened to its horns, is lifted down by crane from the roof of a four-story building in Karachi’s Nazimabad neighborhood on Sunday, August 12, 2018. (AN photo M.F.Sabir)

For the past decade, Hasan has raised bulls to be eaten at Eid-al-Adha on the rooftop of his four-story building, from which they are lowered by crane once ready for sacrifice. (AN photo M.F.Sabir)

A crane operator is in action as the sacrificial bulls are grown at the rooftop of a four-story building are being taken down the help of crane in Nazimabad neighborhood of the city here on Sunday, August 12, 2018 (AN photo M.F.Sabir)

A woman, right, and a child watch through their window as a sacrificial bull is lifted down from the rooftop of a four-story building in Karachi’s Nazimabad neighborhood on Sunday, August 12, 2018. (AN photo M.F.Sabir)

The removal of Hasan’s bulls from the rooftop is a popular attraction among adults and children alike in Karachi. Here, two girls pose for a photo with one of the bulls on Sunday, August 12, 2018. (AN photo M.F.Sabir)

Girls watch from a window as a sacrificial bull is lifted down from the rooftop of a four-story building in Karachi’s Nazimabad neighborhood on Sunday, August 12, 2018. (AN Photo M.F.Sabir)

• People in Karachi use rooftops of the building as an affordable place to raise bulls as sacrificial animals for Eid al Adha celebrations
• People in Karachi use rooftops of the building as an affordable place to raise bulls as sacrificial animals for Eid al Adha celebrations

KARACHI: A crowd gathers in front of the four-story residence of Ajaz Hasan in Karachi’s Nazimabad neighborhood. Above them a crane lowers its cargo from the rooftop: a live bull. 
For the past decade, Hasan has used the space afforded by his building’s rooftop to raise bulls that will be slaughtered and eaten during Eid celebrations. But Sunday was a particularly special occasion as the bulls sported the national flag on their horns in honor of Pakistan’s Independence Day, which falls on Tuesday. 
As the crane arrives, residents pour out onto the street or dash to their windows to watch this unusual but interesting exercise. 
“I would always purchase a baby bull and raise it to sacrifice on Eid Al-Adha,” Hasan told Arab News. “But there is no longer enough space at street level to keep bulls, so, 10 years ago, I had the idea of using the rooftop instead.
“That first time I raised a bull on the roof, I realized I’d need a crane to get it down, and that attracted a lot of attention,” he continued.
This year, Hasan raised seven bulls for sacrifice at Eid-al-Adha. “We don’t just feed them grass, like most cattle,” he added, explaining that his bulls are “special” and receive “special feed.”