Bar children below 14 years to greet VVIPs: PIL

MADURAI: Nearly a month after several school children were made to wait for hours under the scorching sun to welcome Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU) vice-chancellor Kalyani Mathivanan's into the campus, a public interest litigation (PIL) has been filed seeking action against her and also a direction to the state's school education secretary not to use any children below 14 years for any public celebrations or greeting any VVIPs.ss
The PIL was filed by P Vijayakumar, co-convener of 'Save MKU Coalition' and also a retired lecturer of the Saraswathi Narayanan College.
The petitioner contended that Kalyani Mathivanan's appointment was challenged at the Madurai bench which on June 26 set aside her appointment as VC.
Challenging it, the VC had filed an appeal before the Supreme Court. The apex court on July 4 granted interim stay over the bench's order for six weeks.
When she was returning to the university from the Madurai airport, a convoy of 50 cars followed her car and hoardings praising her were erected on either side of the road, posters were pasted all over the walls and crackers were burst inside the university campus, the petitioner said.
"Above all, nearly 50 children studying in the MKU's public school and women casual labourers were made to stand carrying plates with flower petals under the scorching sun to shower the same on the VC," the petitioner said.
On that day, the children were abused by the school correspondent who is the MKU's registrar. The students were made to miss their classes for the purpose of receiving the VC, the petitioner claimed.
As per the United Nations' declaration for the rights of Children, children should be protected against all forms of neglect, cruelty and exploitation, which the Supreme Court has adopted in Vishal Jeeth case, the petitioner said.
Hence, the petitioner wanted the court to give direction to the state's higher education principal secretary to conduct an inquiry pertaining to the incidents that took place on July 7 at the MKU and to submit the report to the court.
Besides, the petitioner has sought the court's direction to the state's school education secretary not to use any children below 14 years of age for any public celebration or greeting any VVIPs.
When the matter came up before the division bench of justices M Jaichandren and R Mahadevan, the bench ordered notice to be issued to the secretaries of higher and school education departments, director of matriculation schools, Madurai's chief educational officer, and MKU's VC and its registrar.