The Madras High Court has admitted a writ petition challenging the placement of Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu after Vande Mataram and the National Anthem during the swearing-in ceremony of Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay and the Council of Ministers. A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan admitted the petition for hearing, issued rule nisi, and called for the records within eight weeks.
The petitioner has questioned the validity of a January 28 communication issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs concerning the rendering of Vande Mataram and the National Anthem at official functions. According to the plea, the communication does not prohibit the commencement of State functions with an officially recognised State Song and contains no specific directions governing the placement of Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu.
The petition contends that the State Song has traditionally occupied a position of ceremonial importance in Tamil Nadu and argues that placing it after Vande Mataram and the National Anthem at the swearing-in ceremony diminished the status accorded to it in official events. It has been submitted that the issue concerns the preservation of Tamil Nadu’s cultural identity and established constitutional conventions followed at State functions.
The petitioner has further argued that while the National Anthem and Vande Mataram occupy a distinct constitutional and national position, there is no express constitutional, statutory or executive mandate requiring a State Song to be rendered only after them at official State ceremonies.
Accordingly, the plea seeks quashing of the January 28 circular and a direction to the authorities to frame appropriate protocol guidelines ensuring that Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu is played at the commencement of official State functions and constitutional ceremonies in Tamil Nadu.
