Amit Shah criticised by former judges for ‘misinterpreting’ Salwa Judum ruling, targeting opposition VP candidate
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Amit Shah criticised by former SC judges for ‘misinterpreting’ Salwa Judum ruling, targeting opposition VP candidate
Former Supreme Court judges and chief justices of High Courts criticised Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his remarks on the Opposition’s Vice Presidential candidate B Sudershan Reddy on Monday. They said, “The judgment nowhere supports, either expressly or by compelling implication of its text, Naxalism or its ideology” On Amit Shah’s comments against Reddy, the judges said, “While the campaign for the office of the Vice President of India may well be ideological, it can be conducted civilly and with dignity” The statement was signed by a group of 18 retired judges, including seven former judges of the Supreme Court and three ex-Chief Justices of High courts. Amit Shah told new agency ANI in an exclusive interview that Reddy rejected Salwa Judum and “ended the right of self-defence of tribals” He accused Reddy (79), who retired from the apex court in July 2011, of “supporting” Left Wing Extremism. Reddy said he would not have made the remarks had he read the complete judgement.
In a statement released on Monday, the former judges said, “The statement of the Union Home Minister Mr. Amit Shah publicly misinterpreting the judgement of the Supreme Court in the Salwa Judum case is unfortunate.”
They said, “The judgment nowhere supports, either expressly or by compelling implication of its text, Naxalism or its ideology.”
On Amit Shah’s comments against Reddy, the judges said, “While the campaign for the office of the Vice President of India may well be ideological, it can be conducted civilly and with dignity.”
Out of respect for the office of the Vice President of India, it would be wise to refrain from “name-calling”, the retired judges said.
The former Supreme Court and High Court judges argued that criticising “the so-called ideology of either candidate should be eschewed.”
Moreover, the likes of former Supreme Court justices Kurien Joseph, Madan B Lokur and J Chelameswar, said that “prejudicial misinterpretation” of the top court’s verdict by a “high political functionary” is likely to have a “chilling effect” on its judges, “shaking the independence of the judiciary.”
The statement was signed by a group of 18 retired judges, including seven former judges of the Supreme Court and three ex-Chief Justices of High Courts.
Also Read | Amit Shah accuses Opposition VP candidate Sudershan Reddy of ‘helping’ Naxalism
What did Amit Shah say? Amit Shah told new agency ANI in an exclusive interview that Sudershan Reddy, a former Supreme Court judge, rejected Salwa Judum and “ended the right of self-defence of tribals.”
He accused Reddy (79), who retired from the apex court in July 2011, of “supporting” Naxalism and claimed that Left Wing Extremism would have ended by 2020 in the absence of the Salwa Judum judgement.
Shah further alleged that because of Reddy’s 2011 ruling, “Naxalism lasted for more than two decades in this country…”
Amit Shah also took aim at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and demanded that the Congress leader should give an explanation for the Opposition alliance deciding to pick a nominee who “sympathised with left-wing ideology” and whose ruling that “disbanded” the “armed civilian vigilante group” prevented the eradication of Naxals before 2020.
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Sudershan Reddy: ‘Salwa Judum judgment not mine, but…’ Earlier, when Amit Shah attacked B Sudershan Reddy over the Salwa Judum judgement, the Opposition’s vice presidential candidate asserted that the verdict was not his but that of the Supreme Court.
Reddy told news agency PTI that Shah would not have made the remarks had he read the complete judgement.
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“I do not wish to join an issue directly with the Honourable Home Minister of India, whose constitutional duty and obligation is to protect the life, liberty and property of every citizen, irrespective of ideological differences.
“Secondly, I have authored the judgment. The judgment is not mine, the judgment is of the Supreme Court,” he told PTI in an interview.
What was Salwa Judum? Salwa Judum was a “vigilante” group or militia formed in Chhattisgarh in 2005, which used armed tribal civilians to combat Maoist violence.
Amit Shah said the Salwa Judum was formed by Adivasis who wanted education, roads and healthcare. “It was meant to protect them, which the Supreme Court disbanded,” the Union Minister said.
Also Read | Amit Shah accuses Opposition VP candidate Sudershan Reddy of ‘helping’ Naxalism
The July 2011 judgment authored by Justice Reddy and Justice SS Nijjar had disbanded Salwa Judum in Bastar, Chhattisgarh for being illegal and unconstitutional.
The Supreme Court bench had ruled that using tribal youths as Special Police Officers in the fight against Maoist insurgents was illegal and unconstitutional.
The ruling was delivered while BJP under chief minister Raman Singh was in power in Chhattisgarh.
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Accoridng to ANI, Justice Reddy’s ruling said that the Salwa Judum was an “abdication of constitutional responsibilities of the State to provide appropriate security to citizens by having an appropriately trained professional police force of sufficient numbers and properly equipped on a permanent basis”.
Reddy, who served as Chief Justice of the Guwahati High Court before being elevated to the Supreme Court in 2007, retired in July 2011. He filed his nomination on August 21 and will face NDA nominee CP Radhakrishnan in the September 9 Vice Presidential election.