MAJLIS E-TAHAFFUZ-E-URDU Vs. COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, STATE OF TAMIL NADU; DIRECTOR OF MATRICULATION SCHOOLS AND ORS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, a Trust stated to be established originally in 2011 to promote, propagate and safeguard the Urdu language and its literature in the State of Tamil Nadu, by this writ petition, seeks a Writ to Declare the provisions of Section 3(1) of the Tamil Learning Act, 2006 (for short 'the said Act'), as published in the Gazette on 12.06.2006, as unconstitutional, void and inoperative allegedly on the ground that it entrenches the rights of minorities under Articles 29 and 30(1) of the Constitution of India to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.

(2.) The petitioner states that prior to coming into force of the said Act, Urdu was taught as Part-I language in minority institutions, primarily belonging to the Muslim community. But post the said Act coming into force, it is sought to be relegated to the status of an optional language, and thus, un-aided minority educational institutions are now called to teach Tamil as a compulsory subject in Part-I.

(3.) The petitioner concedes that the provisions of the said Act have been upheld by the Division Bench of this Court in K.R.Ramaswamy and others vs. The State of Tamil Nadu, 2008 AIR(Mad) 25 and the Special Leave Petitions preferred by two writ petitioners i.e., Kanyakumari District Malayala Samajan and Mr.K.R.Ramaswamy, separately against the aforesaid judgment are stated to have been dismissed on 18.02.2008 & 14.07.2008 respectively. However, the plea of the petitioner is that this may not be a good law, in view of the subsequent Constitution Bench judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in State of Karnataka & another vs. Associated Management of Primary & Secondary Schools Government Recognised Unaided English Medium & others, 2013 11 SCC 72.