MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Friday issued notice to the union and the state governments on a PIL to include the Vannar caste under Scheduled Castes (SC) category and to stop identifying them as the ‘Salavai Thozhilalar’ (laundry workers) in the community certificate.
The litigant, Thangam alias Isaikki Muthu of Samayanallur in Madurai, submitted that the members of the Vannar community face oppression, exploitation, and untouchability, and most of them live below the poverty line. But they lack reservation in education and government employment, he claimed.
While the Vannar caste members come under the SC community in Kanniyakumari and Sengottai, they are treated as members of the Most Backward Class (MBC) in other parts of TN, the litigant claimed.
A bench comprising Acting Chief Justice T Raja and Justice D Krishnakumar issued notice to the authorities concerned and adjourned the case by two weeks.