Shiv Sena (UBT) is now questioning the impartiality of Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud. Senior party leader Sanjay Raut has even advised the CJI to stay away from the matter related to Shiv Sena. Raut has raised questions at a time when just a day before, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited the residence of the CJI and participated in Ganesh Puja. Apart from this, many lawyers also raised questions on this meeting. Whereas, the Bharatiya Janata Party has termed it as just participating in the puja.
PM Modi has also shared a picture related to this on social media. He wrote, ‘Attended Ganesh Puja at the residence of CJI Justice DY Chandrachud ji. May Lord Ganesha grant happiness, prosperity and wonderful health to all of us.’
Raut has raised questions on PM Modi’s visit to CJI’s house. According to news agency ANI, he said, ‘Look, this is the festival of Ganpati ji. How many people’s houses has the Prime Minister visited so far? I don’t know. Ganesh festival is celebrated at many places in Delhi, but the Prime Minister went to the Chief Justice’s house and the Prime Minister and the Chief Justice performed the aarti together.’
He said, ‘We know this much about God that if the protectors of the Constitution meet politicians like this, people will get suspicious.’ He said that in a case, the party Prime Minister should not talk so closely with the Chief Justice. He said, ‘For the last 3 years, dates are being given one after the other. An illegal government is running.’ He has raised questions on the splitting of the Nationalist Congress Party and Shiv Sena.
Advice to CJI to withdraw from the case
Raut has advised CJI Chandrachud to withdraw from the case related to the Maharashtra government. Raut said, ‘I feel that there is a tradition that in such cases, if there is any connection between the judge and the party, then he recuses himself from the case. Now I feel that Chandrachud sahab should recuse himself from this.’ Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sunil Prabhu has challenged the decision of Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar.
Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi wrote, “Well, after the festival, hopefully the CJI will deem it fit to hear Maharashtra and the violation of Article 10 of the Constitution in Maharashtra. Oh, but elections are just around the corner, it can be postponed to the next day.”
questions raised here too
Advocate Prashant Bhushan has also raised questions on PM Modi’s visit to the CJI’s residence. He said, ‘It is surprising that CJI Chandrachud allowed Modi to come to his house for a personal meeting. This sends bad signals for the judiciary. The judiciary, which has the responsibility of protecting the rights of citizens from the executive and ensures that the government works within the ambit of the Constitution. This is the reason why there should be distance between the executive and the judiciary.’
BJP raised questions on opponents
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader BL Santosh has questioned the opponents of PM Modi’s visit to the CJI’s residence. He wrote, ‘The crying has started!!! Courtesy, cordiality, solidarity, fellow travellers in the journey of the country, all these are anathema for these leftist liberals. This was not a social gathering, Ganpati puja is very difficult to digest.’
He had raised questions on advocate Indira Jaising. Jaising tagged senior advocate Kapil Sibal and demanded that SCBA publicly condemn this meeting. He had said that due to this, the trust in the independence of the CJI has been lost.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala said, “Participating in Ganesh Puja is not a crime. Judiciary and politicians share the stage on many occasions in auspicious ceremonies, weddings, events. But if the Prime Minister attends it at the CJI’s house, Uddhav Sena MPs question the integrity of the CJI and the Supreme Court. The Congress ecosystem attacks the Supreme Court like Rahul Gandhi did in the past. This is a shameful contempt of court and an insult to the judiciary.”