Chennai: The Madras High Court, while hearing a plea seeking direction to the Centre and Tamil Nadu government to stop propagating the Aryan-Dravidian race theory submitting the theory is false and promoting divisiveness, said that court is not an expert in history or the origin of races and this determination should be made by experts in the field and not by the court.
A bench comprising Chief Justice KR Shriram and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy was hearing a plea filed by one Mahalingam Balaji seeking issuance of a writ of mandamus directing the respondents – Centre and Tamil Nadu government – to stop propagating the Aryan-Dravidian race theory, particularly among student community, and tender an apology to the general public.
Appropriate that this determination be made by experts in the field, and not by the court: High Court
“The court is not an expert in history or the origin of races. The relief requested for by the petitioner cannot be granted by this court without examining and deciding whether the two-race theory, which the petitioner claims to be false, is valid or invalid. It is appropriate that this determination be made by experts in the field, and not by the court,” the bench said.
What did the petitioner say?
The petitioner argued that educational authorities are propagating the false theory that there are two races, i.e., Aryan and Dravidian, and said that this is promoting divisiveness among the people. The petitioner relied upon the writings of various scholars to contend that this two-race theory is false and would cause substantial harm to impressionable minds.
What did Centre, Tamil Nadu government say?
The Tamil Nadu government told the High Court that a syllabus committee has been set up and that the syllabus is decided based on inputs received from experts in the respective fields. It further said that if the petitioner submits a representation to the Director, State Council of Education Research and Training (SCERT), it would be considered and disposed of within a reasonable time limit. The Centre told the High Court that the petitioner should submit such representation to the Director, National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).
Consider the grievance ventilated by petitioner, dispose of the same within 12 weeks, High Court directed NCERT, SCERT
The High Court, without examining or making any observations on the merits of the assertions made in the petition, directed the Director, NCERT and the Director, SCERT to treat the writ petition as a representation and consider the grievance ventilated by the petitioner in the writ petition and dispose of the same within 12 weeks, after providing a reasonable opportunity to the petitioner, including by way of personal hearing.
