'To Browbeat & Bully Others Is Vintage Congress Culture': PM Modi Reacts To Lawyers' Letter To CJI

Bullying and browbeating others is “vintage Congress culture”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday while responding to a letter to India’s Chief Justice by hundreds of lawyers, who flagged what they described as a threat from actions of a “specific interest group aiming to undermine the judiciary’s integrity”.

The Prime Minister took to X (formerly Twitter) and wrote, “To browbeat and bully others is vintage Congress culture. 5 decades ago itself they had called for a “committed judiciary” – they shamelessly want commitment from others for their selfish interests but desist from any commitment towards the nation. No wonder 140 crore Indians are rejecting them.”

PM Modi was referring to the time when Congress’ Indira Gandhi, in the 1970s, advocated a “committed judiciary”.  The Congress government had then superseded three judges to make a CJI and repeated the same a couple of years later, attracting a lot of resistance from the legal community.

Congress reacts

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh took to X in response to PM Modi’s post, calling it “the height of hypocrisy”. He said “140 crore Indians are waiting to give him a befitting reply very soon”, a reference to the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from April to June.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge also responded to PM Modi’s post asking listing four points and asking him to stop blaming his party.

Earlier in the day, over 600 lawyers from across India addressed a letter to the Chief Justice of India, expressing serious concerns over what they describe as political and professional pressure to influence judicial outcomes.

The letter titled, ‘Judiciary under threat – safeguarding judiciary from political and professional pressure’, was signed by prominent lawyers, including senior advocate Harish Salve, Manan Kumar Mishra, Adish Agarwal, Chetan Mittal, Pinky Anand and Swaroopama Chaturvedi, among others.

The letter alleges “actions of a specific interest group aiming to undermine the judiciary’s integrity.” This group, according to the lawyers, is employing pressure tactics to influence judicial outcomes, particularly in cases involving political figures and corruption allegations. These actions, they argue, pose a significant threat to the democratic fabric and the trust placed in judicial processes.

The lawyers have highlighted several concerning methods, including the “propagation of false narratives about a so-called ‘golden era’ of the judiciary, aimed at discrediting current proceedings and undermining public confidence in the courts.”