The Madras High Court has denied permission to an event by the Thanthai Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam (TPDK), reportedly observing that any act that attempts to divide a unified India will not be allowed. According to reports, the rationalist group wanted to conduct an event in Nagapattinam district titled ‘Tamil Nadu, which is becoming the hunting forest of North Indians’. The group had sought permission from the district police to conduct a public meeting near the Sirkazhi bus stand on Saturday.
The event was to be attended by K Ramakrishnan of the TPDK as well as Thirumurugan Gandhi of the May 17 Movement. However, permission was refused for the event, following which the group approached the court.
When the matter came up for hearing before Justice Anand Venkatesh of the Madras High Court on Friday, the state government argued that the event sowed north-south divisions between Indians in an attempt to instigate people. The government reasoned that this was the reason for the district police denying permission for the event.
Accepting the argument of the state, the High Court reportedly observed that unity in diversity is what sets India apart. Permission for any act that divides India, which was united by the relentless hard work of leaders like Sardar Vallabhai Patel, will not be granted, the court reportedly said. The court also condemned events that seek to sow division among Indians.
Speaking to TNM, one member of the group’s legal team said that the district police had initially turned down their permission to protest citing concerns regarding the hydrocarbon project. “The protest was supposed to be held today. But they (the court) said that the title of the protest was against the unity of India. The judge said that we are all Indians. He advised us to come up with a proper topic and assured that he would consider a fresh appeal on merits. The TPDK’s protest was owing to north Indians getting majority of the postings in Tamil Nadu Electricity Board and not being given priority in our own state-run institutions. The district police had initially denied permission because they felt that this would instigate protesters against the hydrocarbon issue in the state. Since districts in and around Nagapattinam are already anti-hydrocarbon, they felt that the result of the meeting could go against the project.” he said.
However, the court reportedly advised the petitioners that they could approach the court once again with another title for conducting a public meeting. The matter was posted for further hearing on June 14.
In May, soon after actor-politician Kamal Haasan remarked at a campaign event that Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse was the first extremist of independent India, the TPDK had sought permission to conduct an event titled ‘Gandhi’s assassin Godse was a Hindu fundamentalist’.
Source: The News Minute