Chittur-Thattamangalam municipality abolishes ‘respected,’ ‘honourable’ honorifics

The Chittur-Thattamangalam municipality has taken a bold, trend-setting measurement by eliminating honorific titles specified arsenic ‘respected’ and ‘honourable,’ which were considered mandatory erstwhile addressing officials successful the State.

Chittur-Thattamangalam has go the archetypal section assemblage successful the state to scrap the honorific rubric ‘respected.’ The State authorities had antecedently made it mandatory erstwhile addressing the Chief Minister and different Ministers.

Plaques, notices, posters and letters successful Chittur-Thathamangalam volition nary longer transportation honorifics earlier the names of dignitaries. Correspondence from municipal authorities volition besides beryllium issued without immoderate honorifics.

“We bash not question immoderate respect that is not genuinely extended by the people. If honorific titles similar ‘respected’ (Bahumanapetta successful Malayalam) are reserved lone for those successful authority, past we bash not privation them. We service the people. We bash not request their respect; alternatively they bid ours,” said municipal chairperson Sumesh Achuthan.

First decision

It was the archetypal determination taken by the Chittur-Thattamangalam municipality aft the recently elected governing assembly assumed powerfulness nether the enactment of Mr. Achuthan.

He said that honorifics similar ‘respected’ and ‘honourable’ were creating a hierarchy among the people. “We privation to guarantee that each nonmigratory successful Chittur enjoys equality guaranteed by the Constitution arsenic good arsenic quality dignity and cardinal rights,” said Mr. Achuthan.

Hailing the municipality’s decision, rights activistic Boban Mattumantha said the determination to bash distant with honorifics would spell a agelong mode successful removing relics of the assemblage era.

“Our authorities systems often run without acknowledging that the eventual authorization successful a ideology lies with the people. Honorifics successful authorities notices, plaques and authoritative letters service much arsenic a reminder of authorization than a people of respect,” said Mr. Mattumantha.

Mr. Mattumantha has agelong campaigned against the usage of honorifics and officialese that bespeak remnants of assemblage servitude. Despite his persistent demands, the State authorities has truthful acold refused to region the honorifics.

However, respective civic bodies nether the Congress regularisation had travel guardant to bash distant with titles similar ‘sir’ and ‘madam’ portion addressing those successful authority.

KPCC adopted step

In 2021, Mathur grama panchayat successful Palakkad territory became the archetypal section assemblage successful the state to prohibition the usage of ‘sir’ and ‘madam.’ Several different panchayats followed suit, and the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) besides adopted the measure.

However, it remains to beryllium seen whether the KPCC volition proceed to prosecute the thought of scrapping honorifics specified arsenic ‘respected’ and ‘honourable.’