CHENNAI: Holding that there is no clinching material to show the exact date of birth of Tamil saint-poet Thiruvalluvar, the Madras High Court has refused to order celebration of his birthday on the ‘Anusham’ star day in Vaikasi month in Tamil calendar instead of the second day of Thai.
Justice M Dhandapani, while dismissing the petition filed by a Tamil scholar Samy Thiyagarajan, said, “In the absence of any concrete proof evidencing the birthday of Thiruvalluvar, this court, under Article 226 of the Constitution, the court cannot give any affirmative direction to fix the birthday of Thiruvalluvar as falling on the Anusham star in Vaikasi.”
The judge concurred with the submissions of Advocate General PS Raman that the averment of the petitioner that a sudden change was made to the birthday of Thiruvalluvar through a policy is misconnected.
The government has not infringed upon the rights of the Tamil community by changing the birthday, rather it is the ‘Thiruvalluvar Day’ that is observed on the second day of Thai and nowhere it was mentioned as the saint-poet’s birthday, the AG submitted.
“As a welfare state, to promote linguistic harmony, it is open for the respondents to celebrate a particular day as a mark of respect and adoration to Thiruvalluvar, but in the absence of any material which proves that to be the birth date, the respondents cannot be directed to declare Anusham star in the Tamil month of Vaikasi as the birth date of Thiruvalluvar and declare holiday on the said date in lieu of Thiruvalluvar Day,” the judge said in the order.
He also refused to quash the impugned G.O. of 2015 that enables observance of Thiruvalluvar Day on the second day of Thai.