The Supreme Court today (Thursday, April 25) set up a committee under Justice (retired) AK Patnaik to inquiry into advocate Utsav Bains’ allegations that there was a conspiracy to frame Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi in sexual harassment case.
The bench of Justice Arun Mishra, Rohinton Fali Nariman and Sanjeev Khanna also directed CBI Director, Director of Intelligence Bureau and Delhi Police Commissioner to assist Justice Patnaik in the probe.
The court, however, clarified that Justice Patnaik will not go into the issue of sexual harassment allegations against the CJI. The court has instituted an in-house inquiry committee of three sitting judges to look into the allegations of sexual harassment made against Chief Justice of India.
“This inquiry only focuses on the contents of affidavit and what is alleged therein,” the bench stated.
The next hearing will be held after Justice Patnaik submits the inquiry report, the bench said.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1556195266657{border-top-width: 10px !important;border-right-width: 10px !important;border-bottom-width: 10px !important;border-left-width: 10px !important;padding-top: 10px !important;padding-right: 10px !important;padding-bottom: 10px !important;padding-left: 10px !important;background-color: #c1c1c1 !important;border-radius: 10px !important;}”]Meanwhile, Justice NV Ramana, who is part of the 3-member inquiry panel headed by Justice SA Bobde, has opted out of the panel, PTI quoted sources as saying.
The development comes a day after a former apex court woman employee, who levelled the allegations against the CJI, wrote a letter to the panel expressing reservation over the inclusion of Justice Ramana.
The woman was supposed to appear before the panel on Friday.In a letter to Justice Bobde, she also raised questions over the presence of only one woman apex court judge — Indira Banerjee — in the panel to examine her allegations against the CJI which is not in accordance with the Vishaka Guidelines.
“I would humbly suggest that since I was posted in the CJI’s residence office, I know that Justice Ramana is a close friend of the CJI and is like a family member to him. Justice Ramana is a frequent visitor to the residence of the CJI.
Because of this I fear that my affidavit and evidence will not receive an objective and fair hearing,” she wrote in the letter, according to PTI. The woman had also asked the panel to allow her to appear before it along with a lawyer and the proceedings of the committee be video recorded so that there can be no dispute about what transpired in the inquiry.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]In the pre-lunch hearing, the bench hit out at what it said were “systematic” attempts to influence the course of justice delivery and said, “time has come when we have to tell the rich and powerful of this country – you cannot run this court”.
The remarks were made by Justice Mishra at the end of an hour-long hearing into an affidavit filed by lawyer Utsav Singh Bains that claimed he has proof of a powerful lobby of fixers, disgruntled employees and corporate figures at work to frame CJI Ranjan Gogoi. Mr. Bains said he was approached by a person called ‘Ajay’, who enticed him with money. The man had claimed to be a relative of the former court staffer who has levelled sexual harassment allegation against the Chief Justice.
The special bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra said it is anguished with the way the judiciary has been treated for the past three-four years. “The way this institution is treated in last few years we must say that we will not survive if this will happen,” the SC bench said.
“Don’t think Supreme Court can be run by any remote power from any corner of the earth, whether by political power or economic power,” Justice Mishra fumed. “This is a systematic game…So many things have not come out…People of this country must know the truth. The Supreme Court cannot be run by money power or political power. When somebody tries to clean up the system, he is killed or maligned. This will stop,” Justice Mishra said.
The court asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta not to interfere when he sought a special investigation team probe into Bains’ allegations.
“Leave it to us… We want to tell the rich and the powerful of this country that you cannot play with fire… That you are playing with fire when you play with this court… What do the powerful of this country think? That they can run this court?” Justice Mishra said.
Senior advocate Indira Jaising voiced her apprehensions about leaving the probe into Bains’ allegations to the government.
“Don’t provoke us anymore… This is your institution, not ours. We, judges, come and go. This is the court made by the likes of Fali Nariman, Nani Palkhiwala and K. Parasaran… But every other day we hear of bench-fixing, every day wrong practices are made in the court… Whenever we start hearing a big case, letters are written… Whenever big cases or big persons are involved, this happens in this court… People are trying to this court, its registry with money power… So many things are going on,” Justice Mishra retorted, according to a report by The Hindu.
As a stakeholder in and officer of the court, Jaising urged the Bench to “probe the credentials of this person [Utsav Bains]”. “My Lords have to see if he has come to the court with clean hands,” she said.
Jaising also voiced her concern about whether the probe into the ‘larger conspiracy’ would consume the allegations raised by the woman against the CJI. Her allegations were being examined separately by a committee of three apex court judges. “Your Lordships cannot investigate her defence,” she submitted.
Justice Mishra responded, “This Bench will not enquire into her allegations. Our job is to find out if somebody approached Utsav Bains to file a false case; whether they are two former Supreme employees or others; whether there are fixers involved; whether a conspiracy was hatched after bench-fixing attempt failed.”
Justice Mishra, however, added that if the allegations against the woman were proved, then she would seem to have no defence. “Mr. Bains does not know this Ajay… He may not be a brother of the woman complainant… We do not know what will come out of all this, but we will find out the truth,” he said.
Bains had filed an affidavit following the unprecedented hearing on Saturday during which Justice Gogoi had said some “bigger force” was behind the sexual harassment allegations as they wanted to “deactivate” the CJI’s office.
On April 20, CJI Gogoi had convened an “extraordinary” sitting of the court following reports about sexual harassment allegations levelled by a former woman staffer against him. He had then termed the charges as unbelievable and an attempt by a “bigger force to undermine the independence of the judiciary and deactivate the office of the CJI.”
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Thursday said her nephew Akash Anand needs to gain greater political maturity before he can be entrusted with any major responsibility in the party.
Addressing a national-level meeting of BSP office-bearers, Mayawati said she had allowed Akash Anand to continue working within the organisation but felt that he was not yet ready to handle a significant party responsibility.
“I have allowed Akash Anand to work in the party, which is before all of you, but Akash Anand still needs to become more mature. Till then, it would not be appropriate to give him a major responsibility in the party,” Mayawati said.
Mayawati also made it clear that Akash Anand, who is the BSP’s national coordinator, would continue working in the party. However, he will not be entrusted with any major responsibility for the time being.
Mayawati refers to Kanshi Ram’s principles
Explaining her position, Mayawati referred to the principles of BSP founder Kanshi Ram.
She said Kanshi Ram had permitted members of his family and other relatives to assist with party work, but was against giving them election tickets or positions after the party came to power.
Mayawati said she was also committed to following that principle. According to her, maintaining this approach was important to protect the BSP from tactics allegedly employed by political opponents during elections.
BSP to contest elections alone
During the meeting, Mayawati also announced a major political decision concerning the BSP’s electoral strategy.
She said the party had decided to contest all elections across the country on its own, irrespective of whether they were small or major elections.
Targeting the Congress, Mayawati described it as a “strongly anti-Dalit and anti-Ambedkar” party and said the BSP would therefore fight elections independently rather than depend on other parties.
The decision was announced as Mayawati reviewed the BSP’s organisational work and discussed shortcomings with party office-bearers.
She instructed leaders at different levels to implement the party’s annual organisational activities with complete honesty and dedication.
Mayawati attacks RSS over minority rights
Mayawati also criticised the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), referring to comments made by its chief Mohan Bhagwat during his recent visit to the United States.
Bhagwat had said that a Hindu who believes there should be no Muslims in Bharat would not remain a Hindu. He had also spoken about Hindu philosophy accepting that different faiths can lead to the same truth and emphasised the idea of unity in diversity.
Mayawati, however, said there was a significant difference between the RSS’s statements and its actions.
She argued that the organisation lacked credibility when it came to issues concerning the interests and welfare of the Bahujan Samaj, reservation as a constitutional right, and the safety, dignity and religious freedom of women, Muslims and other religious minorities.
She further said that despite its long existence, the RSS had not received the recognition and respect it sought.
Mayawati invokes Ambedkar’s Constitution
The BSP chief also challenged the RSS to demonstrate its commitment to the Constitution drafted under the leadership of Babasaheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar.
Mayawati said that if the RSS genuinely had faith in a humanitarian, welfare-oriented and egalitarian Constitution, it should follow its principles honestly and ensure that its members did the same.
BSP reiterates focus on Bahujan Samaj
At the national meeting, Mayawati reviewed the BSP’s organisational activities, assessed its shortcomings and gave directions to office-bearers regarding the party’s future work.
She reiterated that protecting the interests of the Bahujan Samaj and bringing exploited and deprived sections to political power remained the BSP’s central mission.
Mayawati maintained that achieving political power was necessary for the party to fulfil these objectives.
Her latest remarks on Akash Anand indicate that while her nephew will remain associated with the BSP and continue working for the organisation, he will not receive a major party responsibility until she believes he has attained the required political maturity.
Indian Air Force fighter pilot Abhinandan Varthaman has taken premature retirement from the force after 22 years of service and has reportedly moved to commercial aviation.
The former Group Captain and Vir Chakra awardee has joined Goa-based regional airline FLY91 as a pilot, according to a report citing sources. The report said Varthaman joined the airline in August.
Varthaman has not made any public statement about the reported move. A spokesperson for FLY91 also declined to provide personal information about its employees, describing it as a private matter.
What is FLY91?
FLY91 is a regional airline based in Goa that began flight operations in March 2024. According to the report, the airline currently operates six ATR 72-600 aircraft and has bases in Goa and Hyderabad.
Abhinandan Varthaman’s 2019 aerial combat
Varthaman became widely known following the India-Pakistan aerial confrontation in February 2019.
After a suicide bombing in Pulwama killed 40 CRPF personnel, India carried out air strikes against a Jaish-e-Mohammad training camp in Balakot, according to the Indian government’s account.
The following day, the Pakistan Air Force launched a response, leading to an aerial engagement between the two sides. Varthaman, who was a Wing Commander at the time, was flying a MiG-21 when his aircraft was hit. He ejected and was subsequently captured by Pakistani forces.
According to the Indian government’s account and his Vir Chakra citation, Varthaman shot down a Pakistani F-16 during the aerial engagement before his own aircraft was hit. He was held in Pakistan for three days and was released on the night of March 1, 2019. He sustained injuries while ejecting from his MiG-21 Bison.
He was awarded the Vir Chakra, India’s third-highest wartime gallantry award, for his actions during the dogfight. The award was conferred in 2021. The award citation described him as displaying an “exceptional sense of duty”.
His reported transition to FLY91 marks a new phase in his aviation career, taking him from military fighter operations to commercial flying.
BJP Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha has raised questions after his name was marked as “shifted” in Punjab’s draft electoral rolls prepared during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists.
Chadha, who remains a Rajya Sabha member from Punjab and has his voter registration in Mohali, alleged that the classification was not a routine clerical error and accused the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government of political vendetta.
The electoral rolls currently under discussion are draft lists, with the final rolls scheduled to be published in October 2026.
Raghav Chadha questions voter list classification
Chadha said he was surprised to find his name classified as “shifted” despite being a sitting MP from Punjab.
He questioned how such a classification was made and pointed to the involvement of officials at different stages of the electoral roll revision process. According to Chadha, Booth Level Officers, Assistant Electoral Registration Officers, Electoral Registration Officers and District Election Officers are part of the process.
He alleged that these officials could potentially face political pressure because their transfers and postings are controlled by the state government.
Chadha also referred to Paragraph 4(d) of the Election Commission of India’s SIR guidelines. He said the provision requires public representatives, including MPs and MLAs, whose names are flagged in the electoral database to be included in the draft rolls so that they can participate in the claims and objections process.
He alleged that this provision was not followed in his case.
Punjab CEO seeks report on Chadha’s voter status
Punjab Chief Electoral Officer Anindita Mitra told that she was not aware of any deletion of Chadha’s name from the electoral rolls.
She said a detailed report would be sought from the district election authorities to determine whether his name had actually been deleted and, if so, the reason for the action.
Mitra also pointed out that the claims and objections process is currently underway. September 13 is the deadline for filing appeals over changes or discrepancies in the electoral rolls.
AAP rejects political vendetta allegation
The controversy has also drawn a response from the Aam Aadmi Party.
AAP leader Neel Garg rejected Chadha’s allegation, saying the party had no interest in deleting the vote of any individual. He instead alleged that the issue was being raised by the BJP and referred to the SIR exercises in Bihar and West Bengal.
Chadha joined the BJP in April 2026 along with six other AAP Rajya Sabha MPs.
The dispute comes as Punjab’s electoral rolls undergo revision ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. Since the claims and objections process is still open, the status of Chadha’s name is subject to the ongoing electoral process.
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