More than 600 lawyers wrote to Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, alleging that a “vested interest group” is trying to put pressure on the judiciary and defame the courts.
In Short
- PM accuses Congress of wanting ‘committed judiciary’ for selfish interests
- Congress retorts, accusing PM of ‘orchestrating attack on judiciary’
- Over 600 lawyers write to CJI, claim group trying to influence judiciary
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday launched a scathing attack on Congress hours after hundreds of lawyers across the country wrote to Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, alleging that a “vested interest group” is trying to put pressure on the judiciary and defame the courts.
PM Modi said that it is a “vintage Congress culture” to browbeat and bully others.
“To browbeat and bully others is vintage Congress culture. 5 decades ago itself they had called for a “committed judiciary” – they shamelessly want commitment from others for their selfish interests but desist from any commitment towards the nation,” PM Modi said on X (formerly known as Twitter).
“No wonder, 140 crore Indians are rejecting them,” he added.
PM Modi’s remark drew an immediate response from the Congress leadership, who asserted that the Prime Minister’s “brazenness in orchestrating and coordinating an attack on the judiciary, in the name of defending the judiciary, is the height of hypocrisy”.
“The PM’s brazenness in orchestrating and coordinating an attack on the judiciary, in the name of defending the judiciary, is the height of hypocrisy! The Supreme Court has delivered body blows to him in recent weeks. The Electoral Bonds Scheme is but one example. The Supreme Court declared them to be unconstitutional – and it is now proved beyond doubt that they were a blatant instrument of fear, blackmail, and intimidation to force companies to donate to the BJP,” senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said while retweeting PM’s post.
“Instead of giving a legal guarantee to MSP, the Prime Minister has given a legal guarantee to corruption. All that the Prime Minister has done in the last ten years is divide, distort, divert, and defame. 140 crore Indians are waiting to give him a befitting reply very soon,” he added.
Earlier in the day, more than 600 lawyers, including senior advocate Harish Salve and Bar Council chairperson Manan Kumar Mishra, wrote to CJI Chandrachud alleging that a “vested interest group” is trying to put pressure on the judiciary and defame courts, especially in cases of corruption involving politicians.
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The letter targeted a section of lawyers without naming them and alleged that they defend politicians by day and then try to influence judges through the media at night.
“We are writing to you expressing our deepest concern on the manner in which a vested interest group is trying to pressure the judiciary, influence judicial process and defame our courts on the basis of frivolous logic and stale political agendas. Their antics are vitiating the atmosphere of trust and harmony, which characterises the functioning of the judiciary. Their pressure tactics are most obvious in political cases, particularly those involving political figures accused of corruption. These tactics are damaging to our courts and threaten our democratic fabric,” the lawyers said in their letter.
With inputs from IndiaToday.
