Chennai: Popular Tamil writer, lyricist and author Vairamuthu, whose article published in a Tamil daily, where there was an alleged reference to Hindu deity Andal as a ‘Devadasi’, triggered much controversy, got an interim relief with the Madras high court staying all further criminal proceedings pursuant to a complaint relating to this issue registered against him by the Kolathur police in Chennai.
Justice M.S. Ramesh granted the stay and ordered notice, returnable by February 16, to the Kolathur inspector of police and complainant Muruganantham on a petition filed by R. Vairamuthu, which sought to quash the FIR registered against him.
According to the petitioner, it was alleged that Muruganantham was said to have come across a research article published in a Tamil daily dated January 8 wherein, the petitioner has quoted the quotation of another author, who was a native of America, describing Goddess Andal as a Devadasi. There was a communal disharmony and it may create law and order issue, Muruganantham has alleged.
The petitioner as a Tamil scholar wants to give his contribution to give respect to the Tamil scholars, who lived in this country in order to glorify their contribution to the Tamil development. The last article was pertaining to Andal for her contribution to the Tamil literature and also while writing the research article about Andal, he quoted the excerpt of an author. The petitioner has nowhere agreed or substituted his views as the view of the said author. It was only referred as a reference made in the research article that there was already an observation made by an author and the petitioner has nowhere claimed that it was his view or the view which he was accepting it or justifying it, he added.
He said he bona fide in his own language described the Andal as a poet and has a true love of the God and also her contribution to the women liberation.
The philo-social principle as well religious principle and the foreseeing thought of Andal 1,300 years before was also described as a divine contribution not only to the Tamil literature but to the women’s liberation and empowerment. Without understating the true letter and spirit of this article, some miscreants have started making written information to the media as if he has wrongly projected the Andal and in order to get cheap publicity, the present complaint was made, he alleged.
