Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government on Friday informed the Madras High Court that only Hindus are eligible for appointment to Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) department and related institutions as per the Act.
The government informed in a submission to the Court to a petition by a youth Suhail challenging the advertisement that was recently published in newspapers calling "Hindu only" candidates for walk-in interviews for teaching and non-teaching staff vacancies at Arulmigu Kapaleeswarar Arts and Science College.
According to a report on Times of India, the petition came up before Justice C Saravanan who accepted the petition and directed the state to file a counter in two weeks.
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Initially, Tamil Nadu advocate-general R Shunmugasundaram argued citing the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Act. He said that the appointment is only for a college, sponsored by Mylapore Kapaleeswarar temple and the college emphasised "Hindu only" candidates since Section 10 of the HR & CE Act mandates it.
On the other hand, the petitioner said that permitting only Hindus to apply for the post is illegal and against the constitution. He said the state or the HR & CE department do not have the authority to stop candidates of other religions from applying for the vacancy.
He also said that the condition violates the right to equality under Article 16 of the Indian Constitution. The petitioner stating Article 16 said that "it is a constitutional mandate that a state cannot discriminate on religious ground."
Hence, he said that the eligibility requirement should be struck down.