The Noida Police questioned independent journalist, author, and social media influencer Ajeet Bharti on Tuesday about comments he made on social media that seemed to connect the recent shoe-throwing incident at Chief Justice of India (CJI) BR Gavai with the CJI’s supposed “anti-Hindu” views.
The inquiry came after a 71-year-old lawyer named Rakesh Kishore tried to throw a shoe at Justice Gavai in the Supreme Court on Monday. He was unhappy with what the CJI had said in the past about restoring a Vishnu idol in Khajuraho.
The Reason Bharti Asked
Ajeet Bharti, who has more than a million followers on X and YouTube, was asked about comments he made on his podcast and then published on social media:
Bharti is said to have branded CJI Gavai a “terrible judge who hates Hindus” during his podcast.
According to India Today, Bharti warned that “if judges keep making these anti-Hindu comments, what happened in court today could start happening to them on the streets as well.”
In a post on X, Bharti shared a recording of the podcast and said in Hindi, “If you think I’m scared of your gang, make sure to watch today’s live!” Gawai is a bad judge who doesn’t deserve to be one, and a contempt action should be launched against him.
Noida Police acknowledged that Bharti was taken to the Sector 58 police station and then to the DCP office to be questioned about his “recent post on ‘X’,” but they also made it clear that he had not been arrested.
Bharti’s Claims and History
Bharti went on X after the questioning to say he was “fine” and hadn’t been arrested. He tweeted two comments saying he had political support:
Claim of Support: In a Hindi post, he said, “The system is ours; the government is ours.”
Feeling Supported: He stated in another post, “If everyone in the system were against me, I wouldn’t be out and about, drinking coffee, eating roasted almonds, and cashews.” The whole system is with me, which is your system—the system of our thoughts… “Jai Sri Ram!”
Bharti has a history of getting into trouble for reportedly abusive, communal, and casteist content. For example, for several weeks, he made outright accusations regarding the CJI’s caste.
Seeking Contempt Proceedings
In a related event, activist Suraj Kumar Bauddh, who started Mission Ambedkar, wrote to Attorney General R. Venkataramani asking for permission to start criminal contempt proceedings against Bharti.
The letter said that Bharti’s comments “are meant to incite violence against the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India and other judges,” and that the “extremely dangerous” remarks have gone viral, making things worse.
Police officials said that they are looking into the case further.