Shoe hurling attempt at CJI: Attorney-General gives consent for contempt action against lawyer

Attorney-General R. Venkataramani on Thursday granted his consent to initiate criminal contempt of court proceedings against advocate Rakesh Kishore who attempted to hurl a shoe at CJI BR Gavai on October 6 over alleged insult to Sanatan.

“I hereby grant my consent under Section 15(1)(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971 for the initiation of contempt proceedings against Mr Rakesh Kishore before the Supreme Court of India,” Venkataramani said in a letter to Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Vikas Singh who had sought his consent on the issue.

“No person can have any reason whatsoever to scandalise the court. Throwing or attempting to throw any object aimed at the Hon’ble Judges, or shouting at judges to find fault with the conduct of proceedings will be scandalous.

“The reason said to have been given by Mr. Rakesh Kishore, can never be in justification of such scandalous conduct. Such acts constitute a grave affront to the dignity of the Court and to the rule of law itself. From the materials placed on record, I find Mr. Rakesh Kishore, has not shown any repentance as regards the conduct in question as is evident from his subsequent utterances,” Venkataramani wrote.

After obtaining the Attorney-General’s consent, Singh mentioned it before a Bench led by Justice Surya Kant for urgent listing. “This shoe-throwing incident cannot go unnoticed like this. This person (advocate Rakesh Kishore) has no remorse. I have sought consent from the Attorney General and the criminal contempt (petition) should be listed tomorrow...Social media has gone berserk,” Singh said.

Supporting the contempt action, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said “Consent (for initiating contempt action) has been given…The institutional integrity is at stake. Some action is needed,” Mehta told the Bench.

Agreeing to list the matter after Diwali vacations, the Bench wondered if the issue should be revived again for social media discussions, given the fact that CJI Gavai himself declined to pursue further legal action against the lawyer.

“The CJI has shown magnanimity and it shows that the institution is not affected as such,” Justice Kant noted.

The Supreme Court Bar Association has already terminated with immediate effect membership of Kishore for “grave misconduct”. The Bar Council of India – which regulates the legal profession in the country – has also suspended Kumar’s bar licence with immediate effect.

In a shocking incident, advocate Rakesh Kishore (71) on October 6 attempted to hurl a shoe at CJI Gavai during proceedings in the Supreme Court over alleged insult of Sanatan.

CJI Gavai had last week said he was “shocked”, but now the issue was a “forgotten chapter.” “My learned brother (Justice K Vinod Chandran) and I were very shocked with what happened… For us, it’s a forgotten chapter,” the CJI had said on October 9 about the unprecedented incident that invited all-around condemnation.