Chief Justice of India Surya Kant has issued a strong warning of legal consequences against those responsible for circulating a fabricated casteist and anti-reservation quote falsely attributed to him on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). The CJI described the post as a “fabrication” that does not reflect his words, views, or character.
The controversial post, shared by the X account @UnreservedMERIT, featured a photograph of the Chief Justice alongside a Hindi quote that read: “अगर एक समाज ख़ुद को IAS, IPS, CJI, President, PM बनकर भी ख़ुद को शोषित ही रखना चाहता है, तो इसमें गलती ब्राह्मणों की नहीं बल्कि उसकी अपनी मानसिकता की है।” (If a society, even after producing its own people as IAS, IPS, CJI, President, and PM, still wants to keep itself in an exploited/oppressed state, then the fault does not lie with Brahmins, but with its own mentality.) It was captioned as a statement by the “Chief Justice of India.”
In a direct response, CJI Surya Kant categorically denied ever making the statement. “These assertions, which have been fraudulently attributed to me, are entirely baseless and do not reflect my words, views, or character,” he said. He condemned the dissemination of such fabrications and urged the public to verify sources before believing or sharing such claims. The CJI further warned, “I am prepared to bring the full might of the law to bear on the perpetrators and ensure that they face the repercussions of their mendacity.”
Clarification from the Account
After the CJI’s warning, the account @UnreservedMERIT issued a public clarification and apology on X dated May 10, 2026. The account admitted that the quote was incorrectly attributed to the CJI and stated that posting it without proper verification was a mistake. It clarified that the image containing the quote had originally been posted by one PAWAN SHARMA on Facebook on February 19 and that the account itself did not create the image.
The account wrote: “A post shared from my account quoting the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India was incorrectly attributed and presented without proper verification. The statement in the image was not an authentic quote of the CJI, and posting it in that form was a mistake… I sincerely regret the misinformation and any confusion or unnecessary controversy it may have caused. The post has been removed.”
@UnreservedMERIT also pledged to exercise better fact-checking in the future, adding that “healthy debate should be based on accurate information, not misquotes.”
