Here is an intriguing question: what if the lawyer who threw the shoe at the Chief Justice of India in open court was not named Rakesh Kishore but Rahim Khan instead? Is it likely that he would not be let off scot-free but instead would face charges under the National Security Act, Public Safety Act (if he was a Kashmiri Muslim) or maybe even the Unlawful Prevention Activities Act?
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The aim here isn’t to gaslight anyone but to turn the searchlight on a hateful and divisive ecosystem where coarse public opinion can influence the criminal justice process.
Let’s understand the chronology here. Last month, Chief Justice BR Gavai dismissed a plea to reconstruct a damaged Lord Vishnu idol at a temple in Khajuraho. While deeming it a “publicity interest litigation,” Justice Gavai remarked that instead of filing a petition, the petitioner should “go and ask the deity himself to do something. If you are saying that you are a strong devotee of Lord Vishnu, then you pray and do some meditation.” The judge’s seemingly mocking tone was wholly unnecessary, but remember t
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