Supreme Court rejects attempts to pressure judiciary over political protests

Supreme Court of India on Thursday ruled that political protests aimed at pressuring the courts are unacceptable and will not be entertained. The bench, led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi, issued notices to opposition leaders including Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Tejashwi Yadav, Supriya Sula, and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Routh, among others, for filing petitions challenging election‑related processes. Notices were also sent to the Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, Election Commissioners Sukbeer Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, and the central government for the same set of petitions. The court clarified that issuing a notice does not mean it accepts the arguments in the petitions; the next hearing will examine the behavior of a petitioner whose conduct it described as “serious”. Senior advocate Bhatia was asked to appear before the bench to discuss the matter, and the judges warned that no one can intimidate the judiciary. Separate notices were issued regarding a petition to suspend the special comprehensive revision of voter lists (S.O.R.) and another petition filed by Asaduddin Owaisi’s party seeking a stay on the Jantar Mantar protest‑site list. The court noted that the central government had de‑notified Jantar Mantar after a previous October 9 order, and it ordered preservation of video records of any incidents inside court premises. The judges also responded to concerns that small businesses suffer during festival‑time protests, stating that such grievances will be examined in the pending cases.

Context

These developments come as the judiciary seeks to maintain its independence amid a wave of political rallies and court‑premise protests across Delhi. The court’s stance signals a stricter enforcement of rules that keep the legal system free from external pressure.