THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Number 13 can be really unlucky for some, as a litigant in the High Court of Kerala realised on Monday.
N K Chandramohan from Kannur, who filed a Public Interest Litigation before the court pointing out that court number 13 was missing in the new court complex inaugurated this month in Kochi, found himself poorer by Rs 10,000.
Dismissing the PIL, a division Bench comprising Chief Justice VK Bali and Justice S Sirijagan gave the verdict saying the litigant did not have any right to safeguard or any grievance to redress.
Chandramohan had submitted that room number 13 was omitted because of the stigma of bad luck attached to the number. The superstition is Christian in origin, he said, urging the court to take into consideration Rahukala, inauspicious time, while hearing the cases in which Hindus are a party.
The court refuted the argument that number 13 is considered unlucky because there were 13 people at the Last Supper. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that 13 is an unlucky number, the court noted. The PIL lacked any authentic support, the Bench felt.
The court also rejected the second plea saying Hinduism does not insist on Rahukala for all occasions. Curiously enough, the first sitting on the new complex was on February 13. The litigant had conveniently omitted this fact, the court said. The new complex, adjacent to the old colonial building, does not have court No. 13. After court No. 12, it is 12-A.
The litigant has been asked to pay the cost with Kerala State Legal Services Authority. The court has warned of revenue recovery in case he fails to pay up.
