Chief Justice of India BR Gavai said on Tuesday that he was very worried about how social media often distorts and misrepresents what judges say in court. His comments came just one day after a lawyer was stopped from trying to throw a sneaker at him inside the Supreme Court.
CJI Says to Be Careful in Open Court
CJI Gavai spoke during a hearing for the All India Judges Association, which talks about things like salary scales, working conditions, and career advancement. He stressed the need for caution. Justice K Vinod Chandran was on the bench, which eventually sent the case to a five-judge panel.
To make his point on how the media looks at things, the CJI told a specific story. “My learned brother (Justice K Vinod Chandran) had something to say.” “I stopped him from saying it while we were hearing the Dheeraj Mor case,” CJI Gavai said.
He said, “Otherwise, we don’t know what will be reported on this social media.” I asked my wise brother to keep it to my ears only.
The Shoe-Throwing Incident Because of “Sanatan” Comments
The CJI’s warning on social media came after a shocking event on Monday. In the courtroom, an old lawyer named Rakesh Kishore tried to throw a shoe at the CJI.
The lawyer was allegedly angry about things the CJI said during a hearing last month about a request to restore a Lord Vishnu idol at the Khajuraho site in Madhya Pradesh.
When they threw out the petition as a “publicity interest litigation,” they said things like, “This is purely publicity interest litigation…” Ask the god himself to accomplish something. If you really believe in Lord Vishnu, then you should pray and meditate.
People heard the lawyer yelling, “Sanatan ka apman nahi sahenge” (We will not allow any insult to Sanatan) as he was being taken away.
CJI’s calm response and explanation
Even though there was a security breach, CJI Gavai stayed cool. He told court officials to “just ignore” what happened and let the lawyer go with just a warning. He was sitting next to Justice Chandran.
“Don’t let all of this get in the way. We are not sidetracked. The CJI informed the lawyers there, “These things don’t bother me,” and then he went back to the day’s mentions.
Later, the CJI explained what he meant when he talked about the religious plea. “Someone told me the other day that what I said has been shown on social media in a certain way… I respect all religions,” he said.