Thirteen Senior Advocates of the Supreme Court, including Indira Jaising and her husband Anand Grover, wrote to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna on January 17 urging him to take suo moto notice of remarks made by Allahabad High Court Judge Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav. They also asked the esteemed Judge to direct the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file an FIR against Yadav
As per reports, the letter sent through the Secretary General of the Supreme Court was also forwarded to other senior judges of the Supreme Court including Justices BR Gavai, Surya Kant, Hrishikesh Roy and AS Oka. The letter was signed by Senior Advocates Indira Jaising, Aspi Chinoy, Navroz Seervai, Anand Grover, Chander Uday Singh, Jaideep Gupta, Mohan V Katarki, Shoeb Alam, R Vaigai, Mihir Desai and Jayant Bhushan.
“Take suo moto notice of the aforesaid speech and in view of the seriousness of the issue, direct the CBI to lodge an FIR against Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav in accordance with the law laid down in K Veeraswami”, the letter read.
In the K Veeraswami case decided by the Apex Court in 1991, it was laid down that no criminal case can be registered against a High Court judge, Chief Justice of a High Court or a Supreme Court judge, without prior consultation with the CJI.
The letter declared the remarks made by Justice Yadav as ‘hate speech’. “Ostensibly, Justice Yadav was commenting on the Uniform Civil Code, but the entire speech seemed like a cover for spreading hate speech on a platform. There was nothing academic, legal or juristic about the contents of the speech”, the letter claimed.
What is the entire controversy
Speaking at an event organised by the legal cell of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in Prayagraj, on December 8, 2024, Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav supported the Uniform Civil Code and urged the Muslims to embrace the positive change like how Hindus did when the Hindu personal law was reformed. He gave examples of how the Hindus accepted the reforms brought in to address the issues relating to untouchability, female foeticide, sati and so on. However, his remarks were construed as creating an ‘us’ versus ‘them’ narrative and promoting ‘majoritarianism’.
“You have a misconception that if a law (UCC) is brought in, it will be against your Shariat, your Islam and your Quran”, Justice Yadav reportedly said. “But I want to say one thing…whether it’s your personal law, our Hindu law, your Quran or whether it is our Gita, as I have said, we have addressed the ills in our practices…”kamiyan thi, durust kar liye hain” (the shortcomings have been addressed)…untouchability…sati, jauhar…female foeticide…We have addressed all those issues…Then why are you not doing away with this law…that while your first wife is there…you can have three wives…without her consent…This is not acceptable”, he added.
Justice Yadav further said that the majority of people in the Muslim community do not support customs like polygamy and female foeticide. “It is the orthodox Muslims who are harming the country by misguiding others”, he said. Supporting the Uniform Civil Code, Justice Yadav said that the UCC will not only do away with the ill practices within the personal laws but will also contribute to the nation’s progress.
"Kathmullahs" against nation: Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav #JusticeShekharYadav #AllahabadHighCourtJudge pic.twitter.com/venuIMMEdo
— Bar and Bench (@barandbench) December 9, 2024
Earlier, the Allahabad High Court Chief Justice Arun Bhansali sought Justice Yadav’s response after the latter had a meeting with the Collegium headed by the CJI on December 17, 2024. In his response, Justice Yadav stood by his remarks and said that his speech was being distorted by those with vested interests. He asserted that his speech was an expression of thoughts on social issues which is consistent with the values enshrined in the Constitution, and not to create hatred towards any community.