Do not permit cultural programmes that degrade Kuravar community: Madras HC

MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Wednesday directed the state government to ensure that cultural programmes, which insult or degrade people belonging to tribal (Kuravar) community, are not permitted in Tamil Nadu.

A Bench of justices R Mahadevan and J Sathya Narayana Prasad, which passed the order, also directed the cyber crime department to open a separate portal to receive complaints from the public with regard to obscene dance videos posted about Kuravar community in social media platforms. The officials, on receiving such complaints, should verify and remove the videos, besides taking criminal action against the offenders, it added.

Stating that the members of Kuravar community do not have access to many basic facilities, including education and employment opportunities, the judges opined that the state government must take proactive measures to address the concerns of the community and to ensure that they are provided with all the rights and privileges available to other citizens. The Bench passed the order on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Po Mu Iraniyan in 2018.

The judges observed that 'Kuravan-Kurathi Aattam' is one of the traditional art forms performed during village festivals. "Initially, the dance performances were related to social problems and politics, however, this has undergone a change during recent times. The performances began incorporating obscene dances, to ensure the audience stay captivated throughout the night of the festival," they noted.

Such misrepresentation and objectification of Kuravar's indigenous art form will hurt the community's feelings and ultimately lead to the persons belonging to the community being disrespected and ostracised, even though they are not involved in the performances, the judges observed and gave the above directions.