Madras High Court: Taking a landmark step, the Division Bench of the Court comprising of S.K. Kaul, C.J. and M.M. Sundresh, J., directed the schools affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the private schools in the state of Tamil Nadu to make the singing of the National Anthem as an integral part of their curriculum.
The matter came into light before the Court via the present PIL filed by an ex- serviceman, who was aggrieved by the non- inclusion of the National Anthem in the curriculum of various Schools in Tamil Nadu. The petitioner via his counsel S.John J.Raja Singh quoted Article 51(a) of the Constitution that imposes a duty on the citizen of India to respect the National Anthem. It was further argued by the petitioner that despite the CBSE directives mandating the singing of National Anthem in schools, the same is not being followed by the respondents. The counsels for the respondents agreed that the singing of the National Anthem is an integral part of the school curriculum and the schools affiliated to the CBSE are following the directives.
The Bench on hearing the contentions observed that, respecting the National Anthem is a Constitutional mandate and they expect the schools to do the same. The Court directed the CBSE to verify that the directives issued by them with regard to National Anthem are being followed. The Court further directed the private schools to follow the suit and include the singing of the National Anthem in their curriculum. [N. Selvathirumal v. Union of India, 2016 SCC OnLine Mad 1624, decided on 03.03.2016]
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The matter came into light before the Court via the present PIL filed by an ex- serviceman, who was aggrieved by the non- inclusion of the National Anthem in the curriculum of various Schools in Tamil Nadu. The petitioner via his counsel S.John J.Raja Singh quoted Article 51(a) of the Constitution that imposes a duty on the citizen of India to respect the National Anthem.
The Bench on hearing the contentions observed that, respecting the National Anthem is a Constitutional mandate and they expect the schools to do the same. The Court directed the CBSE to verify that the directives issued by them with regard to National Anthem are being followed.
It was further argued by the petitioner that despite the CBSE directives mandating the singing of National Anthem in schools, the same is not being followed by the respondents. The counsels for the respondents agreed that the singing of the National Anthem is an integral part of the school curriculum and the schools affiliated to the CBSE are following the directives.