Reach out to underprivileged Muslims, Modi tells BJP leaders

April 17, 2017

Bhubaneswar Apr 17: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged state governments and BJP leaders to reach out to underprivileged Muslims to ensure that they benefit from the National Commission for Backward Classes which the government is empowering by giving a constitutional status.

During a discussion on a party resolution — that hailed as ‘historic’ the Centre’s move to add teeth to the backward commission — Modi intervened to suggest that contrary to perception, his government would not hesitate to empower Muslims through his pro-poor policies which paid rich political dividends in UP polls.

“Muslims are backward in many regions. The party and governments should ensure that Muslims benefit from the new-look backward commission which has been given a constitutional status,” sources quoted the PM as having said at the closed-door meeting.

The party, in its resolution adopted by the national executive, criticised the Opposition for stalling the Bill in Parliament to provide constitutional backing to the national commission for OBCs — a repeat of what Modi himself had said when he was felicitated by BJP’s backward class leaders a day before the Budget Session came to an end on April 12.

The legislation was referred to a parliamentary select committee owing to Opposition’s demand and after it was passed by the Lok Sabha in the Budget Session.

Modi, later in his BJP conclave winding-up speech, also tasked the party’s women’s wing leaders and workers to engage the victims of triple talaq in districts, but cautioned not to provoke them against their religion. “There is a need to meet these women, but do not provoke them or go against their religion,” he said.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari, who briefed media on Modi’s concluding remarks, confirmed that the prime minister referred to Muslim women becoming victims of triple talaq in his speech.

Modi, Gadkari said, pitched for social justice for minority women, but the engagement should be such that it is not seen as intruding into their religious beliefs.

The Centre has also taken a stand against triple talaq in Supreme Court and argued that this form of divorce does not exist in many Muslim-dominated countries.

Modi also took a jibe at the Opposition for finding loopholes in the security features of Electronic Voting Machines after the BJP got landslide mandate in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. He described the Opposition as a ‘factory for manufacturing issues’ that runs a misinformation campaign after every election.

He also advised leaders not to make unnecessary statements that end up creating controversies.

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‘Pay the worker before his sweat dries’: Madras High Court cites Prophet Muhammad’s teaching while ordering settlement of dues

News Network

December 21,2025

Invoking the teachings of Prophet Muhammad—“pay the worker before his sweat dries”—the Madras High Court has directed a municipal corporation to settle long-pending legal dues owed to a former counsel. The court observed that this principle reflects basic fairness and applies equally to labour and service-related disputes.

Justice G. R. Swaminathan made the observation while hearing a petition filed by advocate P. Thirumalai, who claimed that the Madurai City Municipal Corporation failed to pay him legal fees amounting to ₹13.05 lakh. Earlier, the High Court had asked the corporation to consider his representation. However, a later order rejected a major portion of his claim, prompting the present petition.

The court allowed Thirumalai to approach the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) and submit a list of cases in which he had appeared. It also directed the corporation to settle the verified fee bills within two months, without interest. The court noted that the petitioner had waited nearly 18 years before challenging the non-payment and that the corporation could not be fully blamed, as the fee bills were not submitted properly.

‘A Matter of Embarrassment’

Justice Swaminathan described it as a “matter of embarrassment” that the State has nearly a dozen Additional Advocate Generals. He observed that appointing too many law officers often leads to unnecessary allocation of work and frequent adjournments, as government counsel claim that senior officers are engaged elsewhere.

He expressed hope that such practices would end at least in the Madurai Bench of the High Court and added that Additional Advocate Generals should “turn a new leaf” from 2026 onwards.

‘Scandalously High Amounts’

While stating that the court cannot examine the exact fees paid to senior counsel or law officers, Justice Swaminathan stressed that good governance requires public funds to be used prudently. He expressed concern over the “scandalously high amounts” paid by government and quasi-government bodies to a few favoured law officers.

In contrast, the court noted that Thirumalai’s total claim was “a pittance” considering the large number of cases he had handled.

Background

Thirumalai served as the standing counsel for the Madurai City Municipal Corporation for more than 14 years, from 1992 to 2006. During this period, he represented the corporation in about 818 cases before the Madurai District Courts.

As the former counsel was unable to hire a clerk to obtain certified copies of judgments in all 818 cases, the court directed the District Legal Services Authority to collect the certified copies within two months. The court further ordered the corporation to bear the cost incurred by the DLSA and deduct that amount from the final settlement payable to the petitioner.

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