Resolution passed on renaming Madras HC as TN HC; Jaya writes to Modi 

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Monday passed a unanimous resolution that the Madras High Court be renamed as Tamil Nadu High Court and not as High Court of Chennai as proposed by the Centre, with Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa knocking on the Modi government’s doors with the proposal.

Jayalalithaa moved the resolution in the AIADMK dominated state Assembly which was welcomed by the main Opposition DMK, and others, including Congress. The resolution was adopted unanimously after members spoke on the appropriateness of renaming Madras High Court as Tamil Nadu High Court.

Within hours of the Assembly adopting the resolution, the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stating, based on overwhelming public opinion in Tamil Nadu, the proposed change of name (of the High Court) was debated in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly.

J Jayalalithaa’s letter to PM Modi After a detailed discussion, the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly unanimously passed a resolution (today), to call upon the Government of India to move necessary amendments to the Bill introduced in the Lok Sabha so as to rename the High Court of Madras as the High Court of Tamil Nadu.

The Chief Minister recalled that the Centre had introduced ‘The High Courts (Alteration of Names) Bill, 2016’ in Lok Sabha last month to rename the High Courts of Bombay, Calcutta and Madras.

Jayalalithaa also appended a text of the resolution to Modi and sought Government of India to take immediate action on the basis of it.

The English version of the resolution (which was tabled in Tamil in the Assembly) said the House had in 1967 passed a resolution seeking to rename the then Madras state as Tamil Nadu, which was duly done by way of a Central law in 1968.

Madras City was renamed as Chennai in 1996 by an Act and accordingly, Chennai denotes only the city of Chennai, the resolution read.

As the High Court, presently known as the High Court of Madras, has a bench functioning at Madurai, it would not be appropriate to name the High Court which has jurisdiction over the whole of Tamil Nadu as the High Court of Chennai; and hence it is befitting that the High Court which is presently called the High Court of Madras be renamed as the High Court of Tamil Nadu, it said.

This House calls upon the Government of India to move necessary amendments to the Bill introduced in the Lok Sabha so as to change the name of the High Court of Madras as the High Court of Tamil Nadu instead of High Court of Chennai, it said. Giving reasons for seeking the change, the resolution pointed out that High Courts situated in other states take the respective names of such states, which were formed on linguistic basis in 1956.

Historical reasons behind the name of Madras High Court

Listing out the historical reasons behind the name of Madras High Court, Jayalalithaa said the British Parliament had enacted the Indian High Courts Act, 1861 and Letters Patent was granted by Queen Victoria under which the Madras High Court was established in 1862.

It was named as High Court of Judicature at Madras, to mean its location with jurisdiction over the entire Madras Presidency, including regions of Andhra Pradesh and Kerala.

The High Courts established after states were reorganised on linguistic basis in 1956 were named after such states. Thus, it was not appropriate to call Madras High Court under the same name that was set up on the basis of Letters Patent granted by Queen Victoria, she said.

A proposal was sent to the Central government in 1997 to rename Madras High Court as Chennai High Court after Madras city was renamed as Chennai in 1996, the Chief Minister added.

DMK deputy leader Duraimurugan and Congress floor leader K R Ramasamy were among those who spoke briefly welcoming the resolution.

PTI