Denying permission to conduct meetings to ‘eradicate Dravidian ideology’, the Madras High Court, on October 31, said that no person has the right to propagate divisive ideas or conduct meetings to ‘abolish’ any ideology. The court also pulled up the Tamil Nadu police asking why they had not taken action against Sports and Youth Development minister Udhayanidhi Stalin and Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) minister Sekar Babu for their call to ‘eradicate’ Sanatana Dharma’ earlier in September.
The High Court was hearing a petition by a person named Magesh Karthikeyan, who had asked that the Avadi police be directed to grant permission for an event calling for the ‘eradication of Dravidian ideology.’ The petitioner’s demands are in connection to events that occurred in September when Udhayanidhi spoke at the Sanatanam (Sanatan Dharma) Abolition Conclave organised by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Forum. His speech, comparing Sanatana Dharma to dengue, malaria, and COVID-19, and calling for it to be eradicated went viral, leading to a national-level controversy. Several petitions have since been filed against the minister at the Madras High Court and the Supreme Court.
Responding to this controversy, Justice G Jayachandran, who was hearing the petition filed by Magesh Karthikeyan, also said, “If the request of the petitioner is acceded to, it will cause further disturbance to the peace and tranquillity of the public”. Criticising Udhayanidhi, he reportedly added, “Instead of dividing people in the name of ideology, caste, and religion, those in power should concentrate on eradicating intoxicating drinks and drugs which are injurious to health, corruption, untouchability, and other social evils.”