The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Tamil song tampered with, alleges petition

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Thursday, Mar 13, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Tamil song tampered with, alleges petition

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: A Division Bench of the Madras High Court on Wednesday directed the government advocate to obtain instructions from the government on a petition, which alleged that the Tamil Nadu government had tampered with the original song “Thamizh Thaai Vaazhthu.”

The Bench, comprising Justices D. Murugesan and V. Periya Karuppiah, posted the matter for March 17.

In his petition, J. Mohanraj of Mylapore submitted that generations of Tamils had been taught that the sentences in the song as sung now were the authentic words of the author, Manonmaniam Sundaram Pillai.

“Portions deliberately deleted”

The government had manipulated the lines by juggling them in the first paragraph, and deliberately deleted the portions comparing the language with other Dravidian languages. To devalue the song and degrade the author, the government had printed the manipulated version in all school textbooks published by the textbook society.

The petitioner said going by the principle laid down by the Supreme Court order in the National Anthem case, the government had not only shown disrespect for the great poet, but was continuously doing so for the past few decades.

He prayed the court to direct the respondents — the Secretaries of the Public and Tamil Development departments — to correct the Tamil anthem in all official records by restoring the hymn to its original form as sung by the author.

He sought an interim direction to the respondents to enforce the proper singing of the anthem as was sung by the author, in all schools, government institutions and at official ceremonies forthwith, pending disposal of the writ petition.

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