Today, On 17th March, The Supreme Court of India has declined the request to declare Guru Gobind Singh Jayanti a national holiday, rejecting the plea that sought official recognition. This included the birth anniversary of the revered tenth Sikh guru across the nation.
The Supreme Court dismissed a petition seeking to declare Guru Gobind Singh Jayanti a national holiday.
A two-judge Bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta rejected the 2021 petition filed by the All India Shiromani Singh Sabha, which asked that the birthday of the tenth Sikh guru be observed as a public holiday throughout the country.
While rejecting the plea, Justice Sandeep Mehta remarked orally that India already has numerous religious holidays and did not require additional ones.
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He said,
“My uncle, a leading lawyer in Rajasthan used to say, India is a holy country of holidays. Let us not add to that, please,”
The petition had also requested that the Centre and state governments be directed to lay down clear guidelines for declaring public or gazetted holidays.
Senior Advocate Vikas Singh, for the petitioner, argued that there is no existing policy on the matter and urged the Union to respond and formulate one.
He submitted,
“We are saying there is no policy. Union has to respond. Notices have already been issued [on the petition]. If they come up with a policy,”
The Bench dismissed the petition but said a detailed written judgment will be released in due course.
The PIL argued that India lacks any statute governing the declaration of public holidays, unlike countries such as New Zealand, the UK and the USA where holidays are set out in legislation. Instead, the plea said, public holidays in India are announced by executive order and often reflect the “whims and fancies” of various political and community groups.
In light of this, the petitioner sought a court directive requiring clear guidelines for declaring public and gazetted holidays nationwide.
The Union and all state governments were named as respondents, and the Court issued notices on the petition in 2021.
Case Title: All India Shiromani Singh Sabha v. Union of India and others, W.P.(C) No. 1474/2020
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