Satnarayan Maharaj Chaconia Medal (also known as Sat Maharaj) (born 1931) is a religious, cultural and political leader in Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...

. He is the Secretary General of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha

Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha

The Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha is the major Hindu organisation in Trinidad and Tobago. It operates 150 mandirs and over 50 schools. It was formed in 1952 when Bhadase Sagan Maraj engineered the merger of the Satanan Dharma Association and the Sanatan Dharma Board of Control. An affiliated group,...

, the major Hindu

Hinduism

Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...

 organisation in Trinidad and Tobago. He also writes op-ed

Op-ed

An op-ed, abbreviated from opposite the editorial page , is a newspaper article that expresses the opinions of a named writer who is usually unaffiliated with the newspaper's editorial board...

 contributions in many newspaper

Newspaper

A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...

s in Trinidad and Tobago. In 1976 Maharaj unsuccessfully ran for Parliament

Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago

The Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago is the legislative branch of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago. The Parliament is bicameral. It consists of the elected House of Representatives, which has 43 members elected for a five year term in single-seat constituencies, and the Senate which has 31...

 as a Democratic Liberation Party

Democratic Labour Party (Trinidad and Tobago)

The Democratic Labour Party was the main opposition party in Trinidad and Tobago between 1957 and 1971. The party was the party which opposed the People's National Movement at the time of Independence...

 candidate.

In June 2005, High Court Action 2065 of 2004 was heard before Justice Peter Jamadar

Peter Jamadar

Justice Peter Jamadar is a Justice of Appeal in the Court of Appeal of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Justice Jamadar served as a Judge in the High Court until his elevation to the Court of Appeal in 2008.- Trinity Cross judgement :...

 in the San Fernando High Court. This was a consitiutional motion filed by Satnarayan Maharaj and Inshan Ishmael

Inshan Ishmael

Inshan Ishmael came into the public eye with his launching of an Islamic television station in Trinidad and Tobago, the Islamic Broadcast Network, where he hosted a popular talk show, “Breaking Barriers” and for his historic court action against the state for using the Trinity Cross as the nation’s...

, president of the Islamic Relief Centre. The applicants in the case had challenged the constitutionality of the Trinity Cross

Trinity Cross

The Trinity Cross was the highest of the National Awards of Trinidad and Tobago, between the years 1969– 2008. It was awarded for: distinguished and outstanding service to Trinidad and Tobago...

, the highest national award, on the grounds that its continued existence and award were in breach of the applicants’ fundamental rights as guaranteed by certain Sections of the Constitution

Constitution

A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...

. Anand Ramlogan

Anand Ramlogan

Anand Ramlogan is a human rights attorney-at-law in Trinidad, and the Attorney General of Trinidad and Tobago.. He is married to His Trinidadian Wife Nalini Ramlogan and has two kids, he is a graduate of Queen Mary and Westfield College in the University of London and University of Westminster...

, lawyer for the applicants argued that the State kept the Trinity Cross, knowing that "non-Christians are unable and unwilling to accept (it) because it is perceived to be and/or in fact is a Christian symbol." The result is an experience of disparate treatment, or unfair discrimination, for "many deserving non-Christian citizens who...will never be rewarded by the State and country."