The Secretary of the Tamil Nadu State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (TNCPCR) has invited applications from eligible candidates to be a part of the commission. "TNCPCR is constituted as per the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005, section 17(1), by the Tamil Nadu government. The commission invites applications from the eligible candidates for the 6 posts including the post of the chairperson and commission members" the press release dated September 16 reads. Those who want to know the eligibility criteria for the posts can visit the official websites of the Social Welfare and Women Empowerment Department and the Tamil Nadu Commission for Protection of Child Rights. The candidates can apply on or before 5.30 pm till October 14.
The announcement comes after a division bench of Madras High Court on September 15 stayed an order passed by a single judge who quashed a Government Order (GO) dissolving the TNCPCR on July 13. The first Bench of Acting Chief Justice M Duraiswamy and Sunder Mohan granted the interim stay following an urgent writ appeal by the government. The judges admitted the appeal and granted the interim stay and adjourned the matter to be heard on October 10. While appealing to the court to quash the single judge's order, the state government has informed in the court that the judge was mistaken that the commission had been dissolved by invoking Section 7 of the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act of 2005, but the government had actually invoked Section 16 of the General Clauses Act of 1897.
On February 23, the state passed the GO to remove the chairman and members of TNCPCR as the Tamil Nadu government decided to appoint a new chairperson and members to the council. However, the members of the council challenged the GO before the Madras High Court. After hearing the arguments, Justice Abdul Quddhose quashed the GO that dissolved the TNCPCR.
The recent developments come at a time when the state government and National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) are engaged in a tussle over the allegations of forced religious conversion linked to a school in Chennai. It is to be noted that the Tamil Nadu minority welfare commission demanded action against Saraswathy Rangasamy who inspected the Monahan Girls Higher Secondary School, located in Royapettah, Chennai and sent a report to NCPCR with false conversion allegations. On September 14, S Peter Alphonse, Chairman of the State Minorities Commission held discussions with students and parents and asked the government to take action against the members who sent wrong reports to the NCPCR. Meanwhile, the NCPCR, on September 15, asked V Irai Anbu to appear through virtual mode along with the details of the action taken in this matter at 3 pm on September 20 to explain the reasons for the delay in the submission of the report over the allegations of “unlawful conversion”.