The masked objective of recent attacks on the judiciary seems to be to achieve absolute executive control of the institution
recent attacks on the judiciary seems to be to achieve absolute executive control of the institution
Three recent judicial decisions means attacks on the Supreme Court legitimacy
तीन घटनाएँ
१ चुनावी बॉण्ड स्कीम
On February 15, the Court declared electoral bonds unconstitutional, stating that the “right to know supersedes anonymity.”
२ केजरीवाल को जमानत
On May 10, the Court granted interim bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal saying, “We... reject the argument that the reasoning… results in grant of privilege or special status to politicians.”
३ पुरकायस्थ को बेल
On May 15, the Court granted bail to Prabir Purkayastha, founder and Editor-in-Chief of NewsClick,
holding that “communication of the grounds of arrest in writing was not provided… which vitiates the arrest.”
इनका कितना फ़ायदा होगा ?
These decisions are healthy outcomes for any constitutional democracy where institutions have autonomy and there is a working system of checks and balances. However, they have been perceived by many as breaking a pattern.
A sustained campaign.
a disturbing trend has surfaced :
किस प्रकार से आलोचना करी जाती है ?.
१ Many believe that institutions are colonial impositions or are rooted in western liberalism and are therefore in conflict with the social norms of “new India”.
२ public frustration over the
🥝decades it takes for citizens to obtain justice,
🥝anger regarding judicial nepotism,
🥝and the lack of diversity in the higher judiciary, and
🥝even conjure up fantasies of a secret society of senior lawyers influencing the court.
3 Twitter and it's comments for judiciary
Joyojeet Pal and Sheyril Agarwal, who gathered data from X over four months and highlighted spikes in comments on five days when the Chief Justice of India took positions antithetical विरोधात्मक to the BJP-led government or its supporters.
They concluded in their study that the “Chief Justice’s liberal leanings in several judgments rankle many who lean right.
कई निर्णयों में मुख्य न्यायाधीश के उदारवादी रुख से दक्षिणपंथी विचारधारा वाले कई लोग चिढ़े हुए हैं
“attacks are more strongly tied to digital influencers who are highly polarised in favour of the BJP.”
While the study did not capture this clearly, many online influencers with large followings enjoy official patronage.
Leaders and high profile advisers
1 Nowadays, high-ranking advisers and cabinet ministers devote significant time to participating in podcasts and YouTube interviews and often comment on the need for judicial reforms and even a repeal of the Constitution.
2 विपक्ष की आवाज
However, the study notes distinctions in how the Opposition and wider civil society organise and conduct campaigns online — by appealing to the Court to follow its constitutional role.
3 Today, each judgment and slip-up
is put up, ridiculed, and delegitimised through coordinated campaigns.
For example, the Juvenile Justice Board recently granted bail to the minor son of a builder who was allegedly driving the car that crashed into two people killing them.
4 Juxtaposed मिलाना against news reports of the grant of bail are captions such as “the Indian judiciary is a joke”.
This ignores the role of the police and politicians in the initial procedure. These drip campaigns are part of the long game of organised partisans calling for direct control by the Prime Minister.
The way forward
Television and social media play a crucial role in shaping norms. So, we must publicly acknowledge the threats facing the independence of the judiciary, carefully scrutinise proposals disguised as judicial reforms, and take urgent but careful remedial action on issues such as the collegium system.
Public trust is the judiciary’s greatest ally, and it must be restored by improving
- service delivery,
- increasing diversity in appointments,
- and improving the Court’s counter-majoritarian spine.
This requires reasoned, consistent, and honest public communication about the judicial process.
Finally, we the people must recognise the Court as an imperfect ally, sometimes even a negligent guardian, but nonetheless a protector of our constitutional rights. Our civic vision has to be broader than the narrow framing of a powerful Prime Minister or a dominant political party, regardless of the election results.
Source the hindu
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