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Ex-judges call Shah’s remarks on Oppn VP pick unfortunate, prejudicial
The former judges, including seven ex-Supreme Court judges, said the campaign for the vice-president’s office may well be ideological, but it can be conducted with dignity
A group of retired judges on Monday called Union home minister Amit Shah’s statement “misinterpreting” the 2011 Supreme Court judgment outlawing Chhattisgarh’s Salwa Judum militia “unfortunate”, underlining it did not support Naxalism and that a high political functionary’s “prejudicial misinterpretation” is likely to have a chilling effect.
Shah made the comments in Kerala on Friday as he accused the Opposition’s vice-presidential nominee B Sudershan Reddy, who was part of the two-judge bench that delivered the verdict, of aiding Maoism with the 2011 judgment. He claimed that Left Wing Extremism would have ended by 2020 had not there been the Salwa Judum judgement.
“The statement of the Union Home Minister Mr Amit Shah publicly misinterpreting the judgment of the Supreme Court in the Salva Judum case is unfortunate. The judgment nowhere supports, either expressly or by compelling implication of its text Naxalism or its ideology,” said the former judges in a statement.
The former judges, including seven ex-Supreme Court judges, said the campaign for the vice-president’s office may well be ideological, but it can be conducted civilly and with dignity. “Prejudicial misinterpretation of a judgement of the Supreme Court by a high political functionary is likely to have a chilling effect on the judges of the Supreme Court, shaking the independence of the judiciary. Out of respect for the office of the Vice President of India, it would be wise to refrain from name-calling.”
Former Supreme Court judges AK Patnaik, Abhay Oka, Gopala Gowda, Vikramjit Sen, Kurien Joseph, Madan B Lokur, and J Chelameswar are among those who signed the statement.
Shah doubled down on his criticism of Reddy in an interview with ANI, saying he rejected Salwa Judum and ended the right of self-defence of tribals. “Because of this, Naxalism lasted for more than two decades. At that time [2011], Naxalism was breathing its last.”
Shah maintained the tribals formed Salwa Judum to protect themselves. “The Supreme Court rejected it. After this, the schools that were destroyed due to Naxalites... security forces were present in those schools. They threw everyone out overnight by issuing an order. There were attacks on security forces at many places. Rahul Gandhi should answer these two judgments more than Sudershan Reddy...”
