M. VALLIAMMAI Vs. DISTRICT COLLECTOR, VILLUPURAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Challenge in the Writ Petition is to the order of the respondent rejecting the request of the petitioner for financial assistance for her daughter's marriage under the Moovalur Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Marriage Assistance Scheme.

(2.) Under the said Scheme, aid is provided by the Government to persons who are economically weaker for performing of the marriage of their daughters. This Scheme requires the applicant to make an application at least 40 days prior to the marriage and G.O.Ms.No.49 issued on 26/7/2011 empowers the Officer concerned to accept applications till a day before the marriage. It also states that the applications on the date of the marriage or after the date of the marriage will not be entertained.

(3.) The petitioner would claim that she had applied to the 2nd respondent even before the date of the marriage and had also furnished required certificates viz., Nativity Certificate and Income Certificate. Since the assistance was not provided, she had performed the marriage with great difficulty on 29/6/2015. Thereafter, when she approached the 2 nd respondent to find out the status of the application, according to the petitioner, the 2nd respondent advised her to make another application online. Complying with the said advice, the petitioner had applied online on 5/1/2016. Since no orders were passed for more than 8 months, the petitioner sent a representation on 22/8/2016 to the District Collector, as well as the 2nd respondent. Thereafter, the 2nd respondent passed the impugned order dtd. 2/9/2016 rejecting the request of the petitioner on the ground that she had not made application prior to the marriage. The petitioner would claim that she had in fact made an application prior to the marriage, but, due to her illiteracy, she had not obtained an acknowledgement and her failure to obtain an acknowledgement should not defeat her right under the Scheme.