Madras High Court dismisses plea on polling and counting gap in Lok Sabha Elections 2024
Chennai: The Madras High Court has dismissed a plea challenging the gap between the polling and counting dates in the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections 2024. The court stated that the plea did not address any public cause, and it could not direct the Election Commission of India (ECI) on how to conduct elections.
The petitioner, Ezhilan, argued that the long gap between polling on April 19th, 2024, and counting on June 4th, 2024, was arbitrary and violated fundamental rights under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution. However, the court maintained that the ECI had the authority to set election dates and consider factors like security and staff deployment.
The court emphasized that it could not interfere with the ECI's election program, as the ECI had the responsibility to conduct free and fair elections. Consequently, the plea was dismissed for lacking merit.
The case was represented by Ms. A. Rajini for the petitioner and Mr. C. Kathiravan, Special Government Pleader, for the respondent.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
