BJP's ‘foreign tour’ dig at Rahul Gandhi for skipping CJI Surya Kant's oath ceremony

Justice Surya Kant took oath as the 53rd Chief Justice of India on Monday and was administered oath by President Droupadi Murmu.

As Rahul Gandhi gave new CJI's oath ceremony on Monday a miss, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched scathing attack at the Congress leader, invoking the “ parties” and “foreign tours” jibe.

File photo Congress Leader and LOP Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.(Sonu Mehta/HT Photos)

Justice Surya Kant took oath as the 53rd Chief Justice of India on Monday and was administered oath by President Droupadi Murmu, in presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice-President CP Radhakrishnan, outgoing CJI BR Gavai and several other ministers.

‘Jungle safaris, parties, and foreign tours’ dig

Taking a dig at the Congress leader for skipping the CJI's oath ceremony, BJP spokesperson BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said that he gives more importance to family dynasty than to the constitutional system. “They talk about the Constitution, but whenever there is a constitutional program, they choose to boycott it. Rahul Gandhi ji remains busy with jungle safaris, parties, and foreign tours,” Poonawalla said.

Amit Malviya's potshot over Karnataka crisis

In a similar potshot at the Congress leader, BJP's IT Cell in-charge Amit Malviya slammed him over the reported in-fighting within Congress's Karnataka unit that has plunged the government there into crisis.

“Leader of Opposition was missing yet again during the oath-taking ceremony of CJI-elect Justice Suryakant. No one knows where he is or why he skipped an important constitutional event,” Malviya wrote on X.

“Meanwhile, Karnataka is boiling over with the intense infighting between the Siddaramaiah and D.K. Shivakumar camps. The Congress high command remains paralysed, unable to take a clear decision. And why? Because everything hinges on “consultations” with Rahul Gandhi, who appears least interested in resolving the crisis, while the people of Karnataka continue to suffer under a government trapped in its own internecine feud,” he wrote, concluding with a ‘Congress in power, people in distress’ jibe.

CJI Surya Kant's oath ceremony

President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office at Rashtrapati Bhavan in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and several other senior Cabinet ministers, retired Chief Justices of India, and a large number of sitting judges from the Supreme Court and various High Courts.

The ceremony was also attended by Vice President C P Radhakrishnan, former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, and several other prominent dignitaries.

Justice Kant succeeds Justice BR Gavai, who retired on Sunday evening. Appointed on October 30 as CJI-designate, Justice Kant will serve until February 9, 2027, when he turns 65. After taking the oath, Justice Kant touched the feet of his elder family members, marking an emotional and traditional moment at the ceremony.