Government is Not Nation; Criticism of Government Not Anti-India”. 350 Lawyers Deprecates Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju’s Statements on Retired Judges.
(Judicial Quest News Network)
New Delhi 29, March, 2023: Nearly 350 Lawyers and some of Senior Lawyers of the Supreme Court as well as various High Courts have said in a strongly worded statement condemning Union Minister for Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju’sremarks against the India Today Conclave last month.
Rijiju while answering questions at the conclave had referred to recently conducted seminar on accountability of judges and said that there are a few retired judges who are activists and are part of the anti-India gang and they will have to pay.
The statement issued by Lawyers states that “We condemn these remarks in unambiguous terms. Such hectoring and bullying are unbecoming of the high office held by the Minister,” the statement has been signed by Kapil Sibal, Rebecca John Gopal Sankarnarayanan, and Arvind Datar.
Taking strong objection of the Minister’s Comment the Lawyers said that : “We may remind the minister that criticism of the government is neither against the nation, nor unpatriotic, nor “ant-India”. The signatories of the Statement added that by threatening retired judges, the law minister is clearly sending a message to every citizen, that no voice of dissent will be spared.
They reminded the law minister that theses retire judges, against whom he has levelled allegations of anti-nationalism, were people “who have dedicated their lives to upholding the rule of law, and the naked threat of reprisal against them, marks a new low in the public discourse of our great nation”.
The response reminded Mr.Rijiju that, as a member of parliament, he was sworn to uphold and bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India”.
The Lawyers criticised the law Minister for singling out retired judges with whom he might disagree and issuing public threats of action by law enforcement agencies against them. By threatening retired judges, the Law Minister is clearly sending a message to every citizen that no voice of the dissent will be spared.
The Minister, in his speech on March,18, 2023 obliquely referred to a “few retired judges”, who till recently occupied high constitutional offices, as being part of an “ anti-India gang.” By bracketing the critics as an anti-India gang the Minster has transgressed all limits of constitutional propriety by claiming that the members of this ant-India Gang wanted to make the judiciary play role of the opposition he pointedly threatened these retired Supreme Court judges that “on one will escape” and those who work against the country will pay the price”.
We unhesitatingly state that critics of the government are every bit as patriotic as those in government; and critics, who highlight failures or short comings in the administration, or violation of constitutional norms, are exercising an inherent and most basic human right, and one which his Ministry is charged with protecting, freedom of speech and expression.
Under our Constitutional scheme, this space for criticism of the government is neither reserved for exercise in parliament or legislature alone, nor is it confined to any particular class of persons or barred to any other. The right of every citizen to dissent criticise and peacefully oppose any government and its policies or functioning is an inherent basic human right, which is also constitutionally protected. Criticism of the Government does not authorize high state functionary to besmirch any individual’s patriotism.
The Minister must realize that by virtue of his office, he is the bridge between the executive and the judicial wings of the state, and that he must therefore, maintain a dignified public discourse.
Hence, they urged him to publicly withdraw his remarks and refrain from making such remarks in the future.
