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Justice GR Swaminathan was dealing with a petition filed by one Sasikumar, a fourth-year law student, challenging his suspension from College.
The Madras High Court has asked the Director of Legal Studies, Chennai to issue a circular mandating the installation of the portrait of Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar in all the government law colleges in Tamil Nadu.
Justice GR Swaminathan observed “Dr. Ambedkar is the architect of the Indian Constitution. He is the very symbol of social liberation. His scholarship is unparalleled. He can be the greatest inspiration for every law student”.
The Court was hearing a petition filed by a fourth-year law student, S. Sasikumar of the Government Law College, Theni. He belonged to a Scheduled Caste and had challenged his suspension from the college.
Court noted that the suspended student’s sin was that he had merely sought the installation of Dr. B R Ambedkar’s portrait in his Principal’s office in Law School, and wanted the course to be taught in Tamil.
Court further noted that both these demands are unexceptionable, and as per the Law school, he had uttered rude and defiant words at the Principal. Moreover, he had barged into the classrooms when the classes were in process, and his mobilization efforts were seen as acts of indiscipline and misconduct, which lead to his suspension, the court stated.
Observing that Sasikumar had not engaged in any act of violence and simply taken up a legitimate public cause, Justice Swaminathan stated that the principle of proportionality requires that the matter be given a quietus and directed the college authorities to treat the matter as closed.
Court further stated that in one case, he directed the remittance of a cost of Rs.10,000 in favor of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court Advocates Welfare Board Trust and that the money be spent for the welfare of the law student.
The court directed the aforementioned trust to pay Sasikumar Rs. 10,000 as it will help him purchase some standard law text that will serve as the foundation for his law library.
Justice Swaminathan quoted two lines of Dr. Ambedkar- “Be Educated, Be Organised and Be Agitated”, and advised Sasikumar to concentrate on the first advice for the next two years.
Accordingly, while disposing of the petition court stated “Charity should begin at home. As I was finalizing the draft order dictated in the open court, I looked around. I confess that a photograph of Dr.Babasaheb (Ambedkar) is not on the walls of my chambers. I resolved to make good the omission at the earliest”.
Case Title: S. Sasikumar v. The Vice Chancellor, Tamilnadu Dr.Ambedkar Law University & Ors.
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