MADURAI: The judges of the Madras High Court and senior advocates of the Madurai Bar have contributed Rs 85,000 to a Dalit girl to help her pursue MBBS in Dharmapuri.
After the New Indian Express carried an article on August 26, 2014, saying that M Manju, the first generation Dalit student, who, even after obtained a medical seat in the Government Dharmapuri Medical College after securing 1,128 marks in the Higher Secondary Board exams, was still struggling to meet her educational expenses, the judges of Madras High Court decided to help her.
Justice K K Sasidharan, collected Rs 35,000 from other judges who include Justices S Manikumar, P R Shivakumar, S Nagamuthu, K K Sasidharan, N Kirubakaran, T S Sivagnanam, R Karuppiah, K Kalyanasundaram, R Mahadevan, V S Ravi and Selvi and Justice V M Velumani to contribute to the girl’s education.
Further, five senior lawyers of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court - advocates Isaac Mohanlal, M Vallinayagam, M Ajmal Khan, V Kathirvelu and N Krishnaveni - contributed Rs 50,000.
They said they would bear the entire educational expenses of the medical student in the years to come and ensure that she completes the course without facing financial constraints.
In a letter drafted by S Muthulakshmi, the personal assistant of Justice K K Sasidharan said that taking into account the achievement of Manju in her Board Exams and her admission to the MBBS course, in spite of facing adverse circumstances in life, the judges wanted to appreciate her effort and hard work and wish her success.
The amount was routed through Dharmapuri Superintendent of Police Asra Garg to the girl.