MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court on Thursday issued notice to the state government on a PIL filed to implement a G.O. passed by the then government in 1986, in which it was decided to form a committee of higher officials to take action against antisocial elements that incite violence by creating communal, religious and political issues in the state.
The G.O. was passed on April 29, 1986, based on a report filed by the Justice Venugopal commission in connection with the Mandaikadu riots that claimed the lives of six persons in March 1982. The litigant G Selestine, a 78-year-old advocate from Kanniyakumari, said in his plea that though the G.O. spoke about measures to ensure peace and harmony among the public, the state government had not yet implemented them.
He pointed out that the government stated in the G.O., that stringent action would be taken against ‘religious fringe groups’ which incite violence in the name of religion in Kanniyakumari. As a lasting solution to the problem, the G.O. mentioned a committee of higher officials will be formed to give recommendations to the government on such issues, Selestine added and sought implementation of the G.O. A Bench of justices D Krishnakumar and R Vijayakumar issued notice to the government and adjourned the case for two weeks.