High Court’s reference
I write this letter as a senior advocate and former Advocate-General of Tamil Nadu. C.N. Annadurai and M.G. Ramachandran were the only Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu for whom full court reference was made by the Madras High Court on their passing. The then Chief Justice of the Madras High Court, Justice M. Anantanarayanan, made a reference speech, on February 5, 1969, on C.N. Annadurai, while Chief Justice M.N. Chandurkar made a reference speech, on January 4, 1988, on M.G. Ramachandran.
Tomorrow, on December 24, Tamil Nadu will pay homage to M.G.R. On a personal note, I can say that M.G.R. had tremendous faith in the judiciary and the rule of law, having witnessed his functioning in close quarters. When the issue of parity of scales of pay of various officers of the Registry of the High Court with the scales of pay of equivalent post in the Secretariat remained unresolved for almost 25 years, he ordered parity, after fathoming the injustice done to the staff of the Madras High Court.
His novel scheme to provide at least one good meal to poor and destitute children received recognition from the World Bank. It is a million dollar question whether Tamil Nadu will witness a legend like M.G.R, again to preside over the destinies of its people.
K. Subramanian,
Chennai
Telecom Bill
The newly passed Telecom Bill is essential for the rapid growth of the industry. But, at the same time, checks and balances should be in place to curb misuse or abuse of the powers bestowed on the authorities/government concerned. Already a good number of telecom providers have dashed off a letter to the Union government expressing their concerns such as official censorship, and a few of the overseas providers are threatening to blackout India if such reported ‘draconian’ laws which restrict the freedom of expression and thereby fundamental rights are implemented. It is for the Union government to clarify the situation clearly and ward off apprehensions of those who are concerned in the telecom industry. The temporary shutting down of the Internet being practised in parts of the country like Kashmir and Manipur for example did not serve much of the purpose as the same measure inconvenienced many law-abiding citizens in those areas. Therefore, it is all the more important for the Union government to ensure that the new Telecom law would not be misused or abused and thus remove all apprehensions of telecom providers, so that the sector grows by leaps and bounds and become a tool for the country’s fastest growing economy.
Govardhana Myneedu,
Vijayawada
