Latest news with #N.Mala
The Hindu
10-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
PMK must file affidavit for peaceful conduct of Vanniyar youth conference: Madras High Court
The Madras High Court has directed the president of the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) to submit an affidavit to the Inspector General of Police (North Zone), undertaking to comply with all conditions imposed by the court and police for conducting the Chithirai Full Moon Vanniyar Youth Conference near Mahabalipuram on Sunday (May 11, 2025). A Division Bench of Justices N. Mala and G. Arul Murugan issued the direction due to the large-scale violence reported during a similar conference held in 2013. The judges also directed the IGP (North Zone) to monitor the event and ensure that the conference is conducted strictly in accordance with the undertaking given by the party leader. The orders were passed while disposing of a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed by advocate J. Muthukumar, of Madambakkam near Sriperumbudur. The petitioner had urged the court to restrain the Home Secretary, Chengalpattu Collector, and Superintendent of Police from granting permission for the conference due to the possibility of violence. However, Additional Advocate General J. Ravindran told the court that the Superintendent of Police had already passed orders on May 5, 2025, granting permission for the conference, subject to the compliance of 42 conditions. The police had insisted that the conference begin by 4 p.m. and end by 10 p.m., and no disturbance be caused to the maintenance of law and order. Vehicle passes It was also instructed that passenger vehicles coming from other districts must obtain vehicle passes from the offices of the Superintendents of Police in those districts, and vehicles without such passes would not be allowed to enter Chengalpattu district. It was further advised that vehicles avoid plying on East Coast Road (ECR), and instead use the Grand Southern Trunk (GST) Road. The police had also instructed the organisers that the participants should not indulge in any action or speech that could hurt the sentiments of religious or caste groups. Ban on bursting of firecrackers, consuming liquor in public places, parking vehicles in places other than designated parking grounds, use of cone speakers, as well as obtaining permissions from other authorities were the other conditions imposed by the police. Satisfied with the police having taken precautionary measures by imposing such conditions for the conference, the Division Bench said, additionally, the participants should not be allowed to carry any weapons/ammunition or wear uniforms of the armed forces to ensure that the conference gets underway peacefully, without any untoward incidents.
The Hindu
09-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Tamil Nadu Congress Committee Charitable Trust land dispute reaches Madras High Court
A private company has approached the Madras High Court to restrain Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) Charitable Trust from disturbing its peaceful possession and enjoyment of 181 grounds of land next to Kamaraj Memorial Hall on Anna Salai in Chennai. Justice N. Mala on Friday permitted advocate Goutam S. Raman, representing Blue Pearl Development Private Limited that filed an application under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, to take private notice, returnable by May 15, to the trust. Filing an affidavit on behalf of the company, its managing director Haresh Chand Gordhandas said it was a special purpose vehicle (SPV) floated jointly by Skyhigh Builders and Heeral Constructions Private Limited to develop a commercial building at the Anna Salai property, popularly known as Congress grounds. He said that the two promoters of the SPV had entered into an agreement with the TNCC Charitable Trust on May 28, 1996, for developing the entire property in a ratio of 60:40, where 60% of the developed area would be reserved for the trust and the remaining to the developer. Subsequent to the execution of the development agreement, and after the payment of ₹3 crore, the trust handed over the land to the company, he claimed. Though the applicant company had obtained all requisite permissions for the development, the project could not be started because of hurdles in the gifting of 10% of the land by the trust to the Greater Chennai Corporation for being maintained as Open Space Reserve (OSR) area. The trust could not pass a resolution for gifting the OSR land due to a change in the composition of trustees. In the meantime, the applicant company claimed to be in possession of the land for the last 29 years by renting out the premises for vehicle parking and such other purposes. It claimed that even the TNCC had obtained its permission in the past to use the property for parking vehicles. However, now efforts were being taken to dispossess the company, it said, seeking an interim protection.
The Hindu
05-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
PIL in Madras High Court challenges Coimbatore Collector's NOC to a new mosque
A public interest litigation (PIL) petition has been filed in the Madras High Court to quash a No Objection Certificate (NOC) issued by the Coimbatore Collector on December 3, 2024 for the functioning of a newly-constructed mosque at Kuniyamuthur in Coimbatore city. The PIL petition is expected to be listed for hearing before a summer vacation Bench of Justices N. Mala and G. Arul Murugan on Wednesday. R. Prabakaran, an office-bearer of Hindu Munnani, had filed the petition in his personal capacity. In his affidavit, the petitioner stated that Grace Charitable Trust had constructed a mosque titled Masjid-e-Hira at Kuniyamurthur to Sundakkamuthur Road without obtaining an NOC from the Collector as required under the law. Hence, he submitted representations to the police as well as the Collector in March 2024. He had also filed a writ petition in the High Court last year seeking a direction to the Collector to conduct an inquiry regarding the illegal construction and prevent it from being used as a mosque. The court had ordered notice to the officials on June 11, 2024 and the writ petition was still pending. In the meantime, the Collector had considered an application filed by the management of the mosque in March 2024 and granted the NOC in December 2024. In his proceedings, the Collector had stated to have taken the decision on the basis of reports received from the Commissioner of Police and the Coimbatore South Revenue Divisional Officer. The Commissioner had said that the law and order intelligence branch of the city police had no objection to the functioning of the mosque in the locality. Similarly, the RDO had stated that 90% of the residents in the locality were Muslims and that 150 people from nearby localities would also be using the mosque for prayers. He also opined that the mosque may not lead to law and order problems. After considering both the reports, the Collector had granted the NOC on condition that the mosque should not cause hindrance to the day-to-day lives of the common people, obtain building plan approval from the Coimbatore Corporation, should not use cone speakers, not cause trafic jams due to parking of vehicles on the road, and not create any kind of law and order problem. Assailing the Collector's proceedings, the petitioner claimed that there were no Muslim residents in the locality and that the mosque had been constructed only for outsiders. 'Because of the unruly behaviour of the outsiders coming to the mosque in our area, the public peace and tranquility is being disturbed,' he said.
The Hindu
29-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Madras University journalism department examination row: High Court ordered inquiry vindicates student
An inquiry ordered by the Madras High Court has revealed that an examination in 'History of Communication' paper was indeed conducted by the Department of Journalism and Communication in the University of Madras on May 11, 2024 as claimed by a student but, shockingly, refuted by the university administration. Justice N. Mala had on April 1, 2025 appointed Senior Counsel A.K. Sriram to conduct the inquiry since the university had stoutly denied the conduct of any such examination on May 11, 2024 and opposed a writ petition filed by the student Amanda Miriam Fernandez R. to declare the results of that exam. The copy of the inquiry report served on the petitioner's counsel V. Vasanthakumar as well as university counsel V. Sudha stated that the inquiry officer had sent e-mails and WhatsApp messages summoning all seven students, including the writ petitioner, who had supposedly written the May 11 examination for questioning. However, only the petitioner and two other students responded to the e-mails and WhatsApp messages sent to them by the inquiry officer and appeared in person before him. All three students asserted that the examination was conducted on May 11, 2024 and even a WhatsApp group was created for this purpose. Research scholar Sharmila initially feigned ignorance about the WhatsApp group, to the inquiry officer, but on being shown the screenshots, she admitted to have created the group on the instructions of the Head of the Department of Journalism and Communication (in-charge) T.R. Gopalakrishnan. On his part, Mr. Gopalakrishnan told the inquiry officer that the examination conducted on May 11, 2024 was in the nature of a mock exam and that it was conducted since the seven students had attendance issues. He also conceded that the students were asked to pay exam fees. Stating that the examination was subsequently not approved by the university and therefore, the students could not benefit out of it, the HoD (in-charge) said, he did all of it for the benefit of the students but unfortunately, the decision making authority in the university did not approve the exam. Mr. Sriram also found that it was Associate Professor Beulah Rachel Rajarathnamani of the Department of Journalism who had sent a written communication to the university Registrar on December 16, 2024 claiming that no examination was conducted on May 11, 2024 for the seven students of the 2022-24 batch. Ms. Rajarathnamani had also written a letter to the university counsel Ms. Sudha on March 26, 2025 stating that the seven students could not write the exam originally conducted on May 26, 2023 due to lack of attendance. Hence, they were asked to redo the course and sit for the examination on November 19, 2024. Only six of the students redid the course and wrote the examination in November 2024. The writ petitioner alone did not redo the course. 'The statement of Ms. Fernandez that an exam was conducted on May 11, 2024 and the April 2024 question paper she has produced in the court is completely false,' Ms. Rajarathnamani said. Further, during the inquiry, the Associate Professor told the Senior Counsel that as per the Choice Based Credit System Handbook, it was only she, in her capacity as course instructor, was entitled to conduct and evaluate the exam but she had not set any question paper in April 2024 or conducted the examination on May 11, 2024. However, on being shown screenshots of the WhatsApp group conversations with respect to the conduct of the examination on May 11, 2024 and the request to pay exam fees, Mr. Rajarathinam said, she was not a part of the group and that she was not aware of the examination conducted on May 11, 2024. After hearing all of them, Mr. Sriram concluded that that an examination was indeed conducted on May 11, 2024 for seven students and that the question paper dated April 2024 was also genuine since it had been furnished to the students on the instructions of Mr. Gopalakrishnan who was the HoD (in-charge). Justice Mala took the inquiry report on file, recorded the court's appreciation for the Senior Counsel for having taken the pains to conduct the inquiry and adjourned the hearing on the writ petition to June 9 at the request of the university counsel who sought time to file an additional affidavit.
