Attack on CJI Gavai puts focus on pro-Hindutva voices

Despite being suspended by the Bar Council of India after hurling a shoe at CJI BR Gavai for his alleged anti-Hindu remarks, 71-year-old lawyer Rakesh Kishore has remained defiant, telling the media he has “no regrets” over his actions. A Supreme Court lawyer has now written to the Attorney General of India seeking contempt proceedings against him.

The incident has also pointed to the role of pro-Hindutva voices fuelling disinformation against the CJI. On Tuesday, the police took in social media influencer and self-proclaimed journalist Ajeet Bharti for questioning over his comments about the judge. 

Justice Gavai is the first Buddhist and second Dalit Chief Justice of India, and comes from a strong Ambedkarite legacy. Following the shoe attack, many commentators and social media users had pointed to his Dalit identity, framing the attack within broader caste-based discrimination. 

Senior advocates and activists like Indira Jaisingh and Prashant Bhushan condemned the assault as a blatant casteist attack on the judiciary and the Ambedkarite community.

The incident has also triggered a wave of online abuse against the Chief Justice. A widely shared AI-generated video shows a demeaning image of CJI Gavai with a pot around his neck and his face coloured blue while he is being hit by a shoe.

The attack had drawn condemnation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, and other senior Congress leaders. The CPI, Ajit Pawar, Sanjay Raut, DMK, and others also strongly condemned the attack.  Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal also condemned the attack, stating that “no Indian can support this”.

The remark that triggered backlash in some quarters

There was backlash in some quarters over CJI Gavai’s remarks during a September 16 Supreme Court hearing on a plea seeking the restoration of a damaged Lord Vishnu idol at the Javari Temple in Khajuraho. CJI Gavai had dismissed the petition, calling it a “publicity interest litigation”. 

He told the petitioner, “Go and ask the deity himself to do something now. If you say you are a staunch devotee of Lord Vishnu, then go and pray,” while emphasising that the matter fell under the jurisdiction of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and was not for the court to intervene.

However, these remarks triggered disquiet among Hindu groups, who felt the comments were disrespectful to their faith, leading to calls for an apology and even impeachment proceedings against the CJI.

Bharti, former editor of OpIndia, Anupam Singh, and the founder of the NGO Hindu Foundation, Kaushlesh Rai, discussed what it could mean to target the judge during a podcast.

“I’m a Gandhian. I don’t support violence. If I did, I would have said, ‘Look, if Gavai ji gets into a fight, he lives in the courthouse, and there are Hindu lawyers there. At least one Hindu lawyer should grab Gavai ji’s head and hit him so hard against the wall that it breaks into two pieces.’ But I don’t support violence at all,” Rai said. 

Bharti suggested surrounding CJI Gavai’s car, while Rai suggested spitting in CJI Gavai’s face. “What is the maximum punishment for spitting in Gavai’s face under the IPC? Not more than six months? It's nothing more than that. Hindus can’t even do this?” Rai said. 

In response to public criticism, CJI Gavai clarified he “respects all religions” and that his comment was taken out of context as it was related to conservation rules, not faith. The CJI remained composed, asked the court to ignore the incident, and instructed that no legal action be taken against the attacker.

However, on October 6, an agitated Kishore cited the earlier remarks as justification for his shoe attack, shouting that “India will not tolerate insult to Sanatan Dharma” as he was restrained by security personnel. 

Bharti: ‘The govt is ours’

On Tuesday, the Noida Police took Bharti for questioning over a video he posted on X regarding CJI Gavai. In the video, Bharti taunted the CJI for allegedly wearing expensive shoes and called him “a lousy, undeserving judge” who “should face a contempt case”.

Seemingly unfazed by the police questioning, Bharti posted on X, “The government is ours, the system is ours too.”

In the past, Bharti has also called the CJI “a terrible judge who harbors anti-Hindu sentiments”. Bharti had warned that if judges keep making such anti-Hindu remarks, attempts like the recent shoe-throwing incident against Gavai in the Supreme Court could start happening to judges on the streets as well. 

CJI Gavai is not the first judge of this stature to be targeted online. Read this to understand how then CJI DY Chandrachud was targeted by trolls.

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