M PALANI BABA Vs. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE provocation for the petitioner coming to this Court is found in the public notice issued by the second respondent in the newspapers on 21-8-1991. hereinafter referred to as ?the public notice?. THE public notice runs as follows:

(2.) MR. S. Doraisamy, learned counsel for the petitioner, would press forth the very same contentions before us, Taking up the first contention, he would submit that there could not be any ambiguity that under the public notice, the intention was only to propagate, to encourage and to provide facilities to persons professing Hindu religion and hence the public notice must be held to run counter to the policy of secularism declared in the preamble to the Constitution of India. We will first go by the verbalism of the public notice. It speaks only about ?temples?. By its terms, there is no refer ence to Hindu temples as such. When we take note of the ordinary dictionary mean ing of the word ?temple?, it is not possible to confine it to a place of worship by Hindus alone. The primary meanings annexed by dictionaries to this word ?temple?, are a building or place dedicated to, or regarded as the house of, a God. ?a place of worship?-. However, we find that in the appeal statement made by the second respondent, which has been referred to in the order of the learned single Judge, there is a reference that the public notice is only a beginning, starting with Hindu religious institutions and in course of time, similar ameliorative measures would be taken with reference to other religious institutions also When one goes by the plain dictionary meaning of the word ?temple?, the only word used in the public notice, it is possible to say that the funds could be utilised for renovation and maintenance of places of worship of all religions and not only Hindu temoles. It is for the respondents to take advantage of this legitimate construction of and meaning to be annexed to the word ?temple? used in the public notice, to utilise the funds for renovation and maintenance of pl aces of worship of all religions. That may not give room for any grievance from persons professing other faiths. If not, it is for them to implement the suggestion already notified, to extend the same ameliorative measures to other religious institutions.