Caste Bias and Controversy: Justice GR Swaminathan’s ‘Vedas Will Shield You’ Assertion

New Delhi: Madras Excessive Court docket decide Justice G.R. Swaminathan has discovered himself embroiled in controversy greater than as soon as.

The primary-generation lawyer has typically been within the eye of a storm in latest months, each for his orders in court docket and statements outdoors the courtroom—from praising the Vedas to saying the Structure hinges on the nation’s “demographic profile”.

It additionally alleged “undue favoritism” being proven to senior advocate M. Sricharan Ranganathan in deciding circumstances, together with “favouring advocates from a selected neighborhood”.

“Deciding circumstances on the premise of specific political ideology and towards the secular rules of Indian Structure,” added the movement, seen by ThePrint.

Justice Swaminathan has even confronted criticism from throughout the judiciary.

In October this yr, former Madras Excessive Court docket decide Justice Okay. Chandru alleged that Justice Swaminathan had betrayed his oath to the Structure by making statements towards secularism and the rule of regulation.

Justice Chandru’s feedback adopted Justice Swaminathan’s feedback at an RSS occasion in Haryana, the place the latter stated that the Structure was “copied” from the Authorities of India Act, 1935.

Talking at an occasion, Justice Chandru described the decide as a “unusual individual” for his feedback, asserting that the sitting excessive court docket decide’s feedback strike on the coronary heart of the constitutional order envisaged by Dr B.R. Ambedkar.

Talking to ThePrint concerning the movement, Justice Chandru stated that the one solution to take away a decide from his put up for his “misbehaviour” is an impeachment movement in Parliament. He stated that whereas the primary stage has begun, the movement nonetheless had a protracted solution to go.

“Greater than the judicial orders handed by him, his conduct as a decide is unbecoming, go away alone his orders. He behaves as if he’s the propaganda secretary of the RSS and its different outfits. He freely attends their conferences and offers lectures denigrating the Structure below which he had taken his oath of workplace,” Justice Chandru stated.

“His speeches in varied boards relating to having perception within the Vedas are to the least anticipated of a sitting decide. If anybody dispassionately assesses his judicial conduct one will simply come to the conclusion that the judiciary just isn’t the place the place he’s anticipated to serve,” the previous decide added.

Nonetheless, in an X put up, Bharatiya Janata Occasion Nationwide Secretary Dr Arvind Menon referred to as the impeachment movement “anti-Hindu bigotry in disguise”.

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‘Vedas will shield you’

Justice Swaminathan discovered himself within the eye of the storm earlier this yr, when a lawyer, S. Vanchinathan, reportedly made “scandalous allegations” that the previous was exhibiting “communal and caste bias within the discharge of his judicial duties”.

A two-judge bench, of which Justice Swaminathan was additionally a component, asserted that the lawyer’s allegations prima facie constituted legal contempt of court docket.

Nonetheless, the order led to protests by legal professionals, in addition to a letter from eight retired judges, together with Justice Chandru, in assist of the lawyer.

The 2 judges then referred the matter to the chief justice of the excessive court docket, however not earlier than Justice Swaminathan alleged a “smear marketing campaign” towards him.

“You’re a comedy piece. I don’t know who referred to as you all revolutionaries. You’re all comedy items,” the decide was quoted as saying throughout a listening to in July, addressing the lawyer.

In July, the decide recalled a story from his days as a practising lawyer, when he had helped safe the acquittal of a ‘Sastrigal’ buddy convicted in a street accident case that led to the loss of life of a person. ‘Sastrigal’ refers to a scholar, a priest or an professional in Hindu scriptures, particularly the Shastras.

His buddy, who had studied the Vedas for a number of years, had confessed to careless driving, despite the fact that his sister was driving the automobile. The incident had led to a person dying on the spot.

Declaring that the case had no eyewitnesses who recognized him because the one driving the automobile, the decide might safe an acquittal for his buddy in an attraction.

“That day, I understood the saying: ‘When you shield the Vedas, the Vedas will shield you.’ Till then, I didn’t take such issues very severely,” he was quoted as saying on the seventeenth Annual Expertise Parade of Vedic Students.

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Efficiency report

Justice Swaminathan had confronted criticism in 2023 when he had stated that the nation’s Structure hinged on the nation’s “demographic profile”.

“If this Structure is to proceed as it’s for on a regular basis to come back, I’m emphasising this, when the Structure was made, we had a demographic profile. Solely until such time this demographic profile continues, this Structure will survive; if this demographic profile is altered, this Structure will stop to exist,” the decide was quoted as saying at an occasion.

He added that for the Structure to outlive, folks belonging to “Bharatiya Dharma and Samprataya” wanted to proceed being inside its fold.

His feedback had drawn flak on the time, with senior Congress chief Kapil Sibal writing on X, “The structure might not survive if judges have such a mindset.”

Justice Swaminathan had additionally drawn consideration final yr when he had launched his personal “efficiency report” to legal professionals on finishing seven years as a decide.

Crediting himself for clearing over 64,700 circumstances, he had written, “In my opinion, all holders of public workplace, together with Judges, should be held accountable and Judges additionally must be judged on the premise of their efficiency.”

He had launched an analogous report again in 2019 effectively on finishing two years as a excessive court docket decide.

What the movement says

The impeachment plea comes on the heels of an order handed by Justice Swaminathan permitting the lighting of the normal Karthigai Deepam lamp on the “Deepathoon” pillar of the Subramaniya Swamy Temple at Thirupparankundram hill. The pillar is situated on a peak close to a dargah on the hill.

Madurai authorities refused to implement the order, citing law-and-order considerations, resulting in protests by pro-Hindu teams within the space.

The Thirupparankundram hill homes each the Subramaniya Swamy temple and a dargah. Whereas the dispute has been simmering for months now, the newest controversy erupted when the devotees approached the excessive court docket demanding a course to permit them to gentle the Deepam on the Deepathoon, which is nearer to the dargah on the hill, quite than on the conventional spot on the temple.

(Edited by Sugita Katyal)

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