Online trolling of CJI Chandrachud: Oppn MPs write to Prez, seeking urgent action

Various Opposition MPs have written a letter to President Droupadi Murmu, alleging interference with the course of justice and requesting immediate action against online trolling of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud.

“We are all aware that the Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court headed by the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud is seized of and hearing an important Constitutional issue in the matter of government formation and the Governor’s role in Maharashtra. While the matter is subjudice, the troll army, presumably sympathetic to the interest of the ruling party in Maharashtra, has launched an offensive against the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India. The words and contents are filthy and deplorable, which has garnered views in lakhs on social media platforms,” stated the letter dated March 16.

Also read: Social media one of the biggest challenges judges face, says CJI Chandrachud

‘Support of ruling dispensation’

“In a matter which is pending before the Supreme Court, such despicable conduct is only possible if such people enjoy the support of the ruling dispensation,” the letter added.

The letter stated that such trolling also amounts to brazen interference with the course of justice. The MPs further said, “We expect immediate action not only against the persons indulging in troll, but also against people behind it, i.e., supporting and sponsoring it. As law abiding parliamentarians, we expect immediate action against the culprits, failing which the matter may have to be escalated to higher levels.”

Written by Congress MP Vivek Tankha, the letter is supported by party MPs Digvijaya Singh, Shaktisinh Gohil, Pramod Tiwari, Amee Yagnik, Ranjeet Ranjan, Imran Pratapgarhi, AAP MP Raghav Chadha, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi and Samajwadi Party MPs Jaya Bachchan and Ram Gopal Yadav. Tankha has also separately written to Attorney General of India R Venkataramani on the same issue.

Also read: Sharad Pawar on Koshyari’s exit: Constitutional violations need investigation

The trigger: Sena vs Sena case

Hearing the Sena versus Sena case recently, the Supreme Court had made strong observations on then Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari’s role in the Maharashtra vote that unseated the Uddhav Thackeray-led government last year. “The Governor must be conscious that calling for a trust vote may lead to the toppling of the government,” said a five-judge Constitution bench headed by CJI DY Chandrachud.

“The Governor should not enter any area which precipitates the fall of a government. People will start ditching the ruling party and the Governor will end up toppling the ruling party. This will be a sad spectacle for democracy,” said the judges. Governors must exercise their powers with the greatest circumspection, they added.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government collapsed after a coup by Shiv Sena’s Eknath Shinde who joined hands with the BJP to form a new government in Maharashtra in June last year. Koshyari had then asked Thackeray to prove his majority, after which the latter resigned, paving the way for Shinde to assume power.