Reporter’s diary : Muniappan or Mariappan? Son moves High Court over father’s name

Among these are minor cases, like dispute over unpaid phone bills and parking issue between neighbours, all seemingly trivial matters which, however, could not be resolved through the usual means. But once in a while come cases that are curious, and even border on being strange. 

In one such case, a petitioner from Valparai in Coimbatore came all the way to the High Court with a peculiar problem: his father was called Muniappan in one government record, while another has his name as Mariappan. In the revenue records, the petitioner’s father had been named as Mariappan but in the records of his brother, their father has been called as Muniappan. Hence, in the interest of everybody in general, and more particularly to the petitioner and his brother, one common name should be determined for their father, he said in the plea.  The man added that he had submitted a representation to the Valaparai tahsildar, but it failed to yield any result. Based on this, Justice CV Karthikeyan directed the tahsildar to issue notices to the petitioner and family members, enquire into the issue, investigate the records and then pass orders citing valid reasons. So is it Muniappan or Mariappan? The final decision on this knotty issue now rests with the tahsildar.