Timeline

Fact :  Thaipusam used to be a public holiday until 1968 . A ban on the use of musical instruments was imposed in 1973 . Singapore is the only country in the world that bans the use of musical instruments at Thaipusam. 

Thaipusam falls under the authority of The Hindu Endowment Board ( HEB)  . This is a statutory board under the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), which is headed by Minister Lawrence Wong.

3 Feb -Three men were arrested   during Thaipusam 2015 and have claimed innocence.
Source :  : Singapore Police Force 

4 Feb - A facebook page published by Voice of One  to 'Speak Up For Thaipusam' has garnered close to 9,000 Likes .

5 Feb Ms Sangeetha Thanapal publishes : Thaipusam & the right to cultural and religious expression in Singapore. Click here to read.

Ms Sangeetha also starts a petition calling for the re-instatement of Thaipusam as a public holiday . It has garnered  20,00 signatures  . 

6 Feb- Law Minister Shanmugam gives his take on the rules behind the ban on musical instruments , saying Hindus in singapore are in a 'privileged' position. 

7 Feb - Oddly enough, there is no mention about the Thaipusam incident on HEB's  website : although there is a statement by Mr R Jayachandran, Chairman of HEB on their Facebook

9 Feb - The Online Citizen publishes an article by Arriffin Sha :'Now can we have our holiday back ?

11 Feb- Law Minister Shanmugam seems to soften stand : Hindu Endowments Board should find out wishes of the people . Shanmugam bows to public pressure

11 Feb - Warning by AG ....The day free speech which is enshrined in our Constitution under Article 14 was lost in our country...
 
Ms R Angelina, represented by Lawyer Mr Ravi, filed an application  challenging the constitutionality of guidelines prohibiting the use of musical instruments at  Thaipusam procession. In response to media queries, the Attorney-General’s Chambers said it has filed an application to strike out her case “on the grounds that it discloses no reasonable cause of action, is scandalous, frivolous and vexatious, and is an abuse of process”.

13 Feb - Gilbert Goh's application to hold a peaceful protest at Speakers Corner was  rejected by the Police event though he has pledged to co-operate with NParks and the police to ensure that the event will be carried out smoothly. A total of close to two thousand singaporeans of all races  had pledged to attend this event which has  been denied them.

24 Feb Martyn See's Open Letter to PAP MP Lam Pin Min over Thaipusam Incident . Full article here 

26 Feb Martyn See files a police report on PAP MP Lam Pin Min over the Thaipusam incident. The Straits Times carries the story.


29 April Lawyer Mr Eugene Thuraisingam of Eugene Thuraisingam LLP serves  an Originating Summons ( Case No.: HC/OS 394/2015 ) in court on the Attorney General, on  behalf of 3 Singaporeans applicants, Mr Sathiyamoorthy s/o Murugiah,  Mr Vijaya Kumar s/o Rajendran & Mr Balasubramaniam 

Click here to follow the case culminating in the relaxation of rules, allowing live music to be played at Thaipusam 2016 after an absence of over 40 years. 

15 March 2018 

Three men ( who are all heroes in my eyes ) involved during the Thaipusam procession in 2015 were sentenced on Thursday (Mar 15) to hefty fines, and in one man's case, a jail term. .

Read more at THIS LINK





16 March 2018  Singapore Police approves procession permit for St Patrick’s Day with no restrictions on the playing of musical instruments.

18th Aug 2015 The 3 men are in the process of considering crowd funding to raise the funds for this case. - See more at: http://whatdidgandhido.blogspot.sg/p/citizens-initia.html#sthash.Xbw60he1.dpuf