Courts cannot rechristen government departments: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court has dismissed a nationalist involvement litigation (PIL) petition filed for rechristening the State government’s Tamil Development Department from Tamil Valarchi Thurai to Tamil Membattu Thurai aft observing courts deficiency the expertise connected specified issues.

First Division Bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice G. Arul Murugan said: “Naming/re-naming of authorities departments is purely wrong the domain of the authorities and specified task cannot beryllium undertaken by the High Court exercising writ jurisdiction nether Article 226 of the Constitution.”

Stating the lawsuit does not warrant workout of the writ jurisdiction particularly erstwhile the origin espoused was purely an administrative enactment for the experts successful the tract to ponder upon, the Bench said: “The courts deficiency the expertise successful this respect and it is purely wrong governmental fiefdom.”

Muthu Subramaniam, 78, a retired Commercial Tax serviceman from Udumalpet successful Tiruppur district, had filed the PIL petition connected the crushed that the Tamil connection ‘valarchi’ would lone mean growth, summation oregon enrichment whereas the connection ‘membadu’ would beryllium the close usage to notation to development, uplift oregon betterment.

The petitioner said though helium had taken up the contented with the authorities authorities, his plea was rejected by them and hence helium had approached the court. He had impleaded the Directorate of Tamil Etymological Dictionary Project excessively arsenic 1 of the respondents to his case.

However, aft perusing the lawsuit papers, the judges wrote: “It is perceived that the actions of the authorities are whiter than white, successful the lack of mala fides oregon arbitrariness. Though a vague assertion is made that the impugned (under challenge) bid suffers from non-application of caput and administrative arbitrariness, nary whit of worldly is placed connected grounds to bolster the said plea.”

That apart, the Division Bench recovered that the petitioner’s plea was rejected by the authorities officials connected December 14, 2022 but helium had chosen to record the PIL petition lone now. “This itself shows that determination is nary compelling urgency progressive warranting workout of bonzer jurisdiction nether Article 226,” it said.

Authoring the order, the Chief Justice besides said: “Moreover, the contented progressive is not of specified gravitas that the non-consideration of the aforesaid would impair the nine astatine large. A PIL should espouse a origin to support the nine and to debar a deliberate peril arising retired of governmental non-concern for societal bully and benefit.”