Despite the disconcerting act, the CJI remained unfazed and continued with the hearings. File.
| Photo Credit: PTI
Opposition leaders on Monday (October 6, 2025) strongly condemned the attempted attack on Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai, with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge saying the “shameful” and “mindless” act reflects the “hate, fanaticism and bigotry” engulfing the society.A 71-year-old lawyer, in a breach of courtroom decorum, tried flinging a sheaf of papers at the Chief Justice during a court proceeding, but was stopped by security personnel.Calling it “unprecedented, shameful and abhorrent”, Mr. Kharge said the incident was an “attack on the dignity of the judiciary and the rule of law.”The Congress president said it was disturbing that a sitting judge, who rose to the nation’s highest judicial office through merit, integrity, and perseverance, was targeted in such a manner.“It reflects an attempt to intimidate and humiliate a man who has broken social barriers to uphold the Constitution. Such a mindless act shows how hate, fanaticism and bigotry have engulfed our society in the past decade,” Mr. Kharge wrote on X.Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, in a statement, said no words were adequate to condemn the attack. “It is an assault not just on him, but on our Constitution as well. Chief Justice Gavai has been very gracious, but the nation must stand in solidarity with him unitedly with a deep sense of anguish and outrage,” she said.Former Law Minister Kapil Sibal, who is an independent Rajya Sabha member, said the “uncivilised behaviour of a member of the Supreme Court Bar must be publicly condemned by all since it is affront to the majesty of the court”. “The silence of the PM, the Home Minister and the Law Minister is, to say the least, surprising,” he said.Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary D. Raja, in a post on X, said the attempted assault was not merely an attack on an individual judge, but “a challenge before the entire judiciary to abide by the right-wing’s code of conduct instead of the Constitution of India”.“It is clear from the utterances of the assailant which ideology drives such hate. The communal and casteist poison spread by the right-wing has reached a stage where even the CJI, a Dalit judge, is openly targeted. This mindset must be exposed, isolated, and defeated for the sake of justice in society,” Mr. Raja said on X.In a statement, the CPI(M) Polit Bureau demanded action against the lawyer for targeting the Chief Justice. “The recent utterances of BJP chief ministers, ministers, and leaders promoting casteist, Manuvadi, and communal ideas have emboldened such acts. This incident is yet another example of the Manuvadi and communal venom injected into society by Hindutva communal forces. It also reflects the Sangh Parivar’s intolerance and unwillingness to accept any opinion that does not conform to their ideology,” the party said. Published - October 06, 2025 05:16 pm IST
