Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale said Thursday that Chief Justice of India B R Gavai had been targeted with a shoe during Supreme Court proceedings on Monday as he is a Dalit, and demanded that a case under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act be registered against the lawyer who was behind the act.
Speaking at a press conference in Panaji, Athawale said: “For the first time such an attack has happened on the Chief Justice of India… The Honorable Bhushan Gavai is from the Dalit community and his father was the Governor of Kerala and Bihar… But he studied, and as a result of his own efforts… (he) made it to the Bombay High Court and later the Supreme Court and got the opportunity to be the Chief Justice… Many people from the Savarna Samaj (upper castes) do not like this. Therefore, they have attacked him.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among those who criticised the incident, and spoke to the CJI condemning it, Athawale said, adding: “It is my demand that the accused be booked under the (SC/ST) Atrocities Act.”
The remarks by Athawale, who is a Dalit leader, could give a boost to the Opposition’s bid to corner the BJP over the incident, as the lawyer behind the attack on the CJI, Rakesh Kishore, claimed to be doing so in the name of Sanatan Dharma.
While Kishore was held after the incident, he was let off after Justice Gavai said he didn’t want to press charges. With Kishore telling media outlets that he did not have “any regrets” over his actions, many have questioned the lack of any legal action against him.
Kishore’s act came in the wake of attacks on Justice Gavai by several right-wing groups on social media, including the VHP, over his remarks last month while dismissing a plea that sought reconstruction of a dilapidated idol of Lord Vishnu at the Javari temple in Khajuraho. Justice Gavai had observed orally that the petitioner should “ask the deity himself to do something”. “If you are saying that you are a strong devotee of Lord Vishnu, then you pray and do some meditation.”
VHP president Alok Kumar had said in reaction that the judiciary needed to earn back the society’s trust. “We also have a duty to exercise restraint in our speech, especially within the courtroom. This responsibility lies with litigants, lawyers and judges alike,” Kumar said.
Criticism over his remarks, including from Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, had prompted the CJI to clarify that he had been misunderstood, and that he respected all religions.
But given the coming Bihar Assembly polls, the issue has the potential of blowing up. The BJP would be particularly apprehensive as it had paid a price in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls for Dalit fears that a dominant Modi government may change the reservation structure.
While BJP leaders stayed away from Justice Gavai’s remarks, despite other Sangh outfits talking about the same, PM Modi issued a condemnation within hours of the shoe-throwing bid on the CJI. The attack “has angered every Indian”, the PM said. “There is no place for such reprehensible acts in our society. It is utterly condemnable.”
Modi said that he “appreciated” the calm displayed by the CJI, who continued with the Court proceedings. “It highlights his (Justice Gavai’s) commitment to values of justice and strengthening the spirit of our Constitution,” the PM said.
However, the Opposition has targeted the BJP, saying it could not wash its hands of as its politics was behind Kishore’s actions. Aam Aam Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal said some cannot tolerate that “a Dalit’s son has reached the highest seat through hard work and honesty”, while AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj suggested that the “right-wing trolls” who have been attacking the CJI were protected by the Centre.
Karnataka Chief Minister and Congress leader Siddaramaiah called the incident an example of “caste-based prejudice” and “Manuwadi mindset”.
CPI leader D Raja told The Indian Express: “Which ideology guided that (Kishore’s) attack? He claims he was guided by a divine force… The PM earlier said he is non-biological. This is a sectarian and communal ideology. This is a Hindutva ideology and the ideology of Manu Smriti. It is anti-human and illiberal.”
Congress leader P L Punia, a Dalit, said Kishore’s attack might not necessarily have been caste based, but that such things happen when religion is “kept at the forefront of everything”.
Ashok Tanwar, another Congress Dalit leader, said the matter should be seen from a social angle. “Such attacks are not a good sign for society.”
A Dalit leader of the BJP told The Indian Express on condition of anonymity that they did anticipate the Opposition using the controversy for the Bihar polls. However, another Dalit leader, Guru Prakash Paswan, a BJP spokesperson, said they were confident the efforts would fail as PM Modi had proved to be a champion of social justice.
Paswan said: “Since the arrival of the hon’ble Prime Minister, social justice has become the flavour of the season for the last 11 years, primarily because he himself comes from a marginalised section and therefore realises the sensitivities of being a backward.”
Under Modi, Droupadi Murmu had become India’s first tribal President, the country had got its first Dalit Law Minister after Dr B R Ambedkar (in Arjun Ram Meghwal) and an OBC Vice-President, C P Radhakrishnan, Paswan said. “These examples show the resilience and commitment of PM Modi to the causes of the marginalised.”
A BJP leader added that the party’s social base is now deep enough to withstand any such Opposition attacks. “The BJP is a party with a deep OBC presence and significant Dalit and tribal presence,” the leader said.
Earlier, the Modi government had taken away one of the Opposition’s main caste planks by announcing that a caste census would be held along with the coming Census exercise.
With inputs from ENS, Panaji