Kerala High Court Dismisses Plea For Publication Of Lakshadweep Draft Regulations In Vernacular Languages

The Kerala High Court on Wednesday dismissed the petition seeking directions to the Lakshadweep Administration to publish its draft Regulations in the vernacular languages. The plea was filed by Lakshadweep MP and political leaders.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly while ruling that the reliefs sought in the petition cannot be allowed, granted liberty to the petitioners to proceed to the Ministry of Home Affairs with their grievances and suggestions.

The petitioners had approached the Bench last month praying for directions to the Administration to publish the draft regulations in vernacular languages and to grant more time to the public to submit their suggestions and objections, and to refer the matter to the Ministry of Environment for its opinion as well.

Advocate P. Deepak appeared on behalf of the petitioners and vehemently argued and urged the Court to direct the respondents inter alia to place the vernacular versions of draft notifications in the public domain, together with a brief justification of the proposed regulations. 

The Additional Solicitor General K. M. Nataraj appeared for the Administration assisted by Senior Standing Counsel S Manu and submitted that in view of the judgments passed by other Division Benches in identical cases refusing to interfere with the legislative process undertaken by the Administration under Article 240 of the Constitution, the prayers of the petitioners cannot be granted.

Earlier, while responding to the petition, the Administration had stated that English is taught in all the schools in the Union Territory, and that most legislations in the country were published in English. 

Upon perusal of the arguments and documents on record, the Bench informed the petitioners that the reliefs sought in the writ petition cannot be allowed.

Agreeing with the submission of the Administration in their counter affidavit, the Division Bench declared that the petitioners were free to submit their suggestions to the MHA which is competent to consider all such views, and that they can be granted an opportunity to submit a representation to MHA through the Administrator as done in an earlier similar PIL by another Division Bench comprising of Justices Mohammed Mushtaque and Kauser Edappagath.

The Bench, therefore, suggested that the petitioners accept this course of action and held that no other orders can be passed at this stage by the Court.

The counsel for the petitioner, although raised objections to this proposition, finally gave in. 

Accordingly, the Bench ruled that the order will be pronounced within a couple of days directing the petitioners to submit representations to MHA through the Administrator.

Case Title: PP Mohammed Faizal & Ors. v. Union of India & Ors.