The Supreme Court on Friday came down heavily on Karnataka High Court over controversial remarks made by Justice Vedavyasachar Srishananda during a recent court hearing and sought a report from it.

While addressing a landlord-tenant dispute, Justice Srishananda referred to a Muslim-majority area in Bengaluru as Pakistan and made a misogynistic comment involving a woman lawyer. 

A panel of five judges headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud of India, alongside Justices S Khanna, B R Gavai, S Kant, and H Roy, highlighted the necessity of establishing clear guidelines for constitutional court judges when making statements in court.

The bench of the Supreme Court emphasised the importance of ensuring that judicial comments adhere to the expected etiquette of courts, especially in the context where social media actively monitors and amplifies court proceedings.

Justice Srishananda’s videos have circulated widely on social media platforms. In one video, he referred to a Muslim-majority area in Bengaluru as Pakistan. Another video captured him making inappropriate comments towards a female lawyer, implying her deep knowledge about the Opposition party might extend to revealing the colour of their undergarments.

CJI Chandrachud said that attention has been drawn to media reports of the comments made by the Justice of Karnataka High Court during the court proceedings.

The top court requested the High Court to submit a report after seeking instructions from the Chief Justice of the High Court.

CJI Chandrachud noted the media coverage of remarks made by a Justice of the Karnataka High Court during court proceedings. He requested the High Court to provide a report after consulting the Chief Justice of the High Court, stating, “We may lay down some basic guidelines.”

The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court instructed the report to be submitted within two days, with a hearing on the matter scheduled for the following Wednesday.

An FIR has been registered against Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu for his alleged remarks against Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi over the statements he made in the US about the condition of Sikhs in India, the police said on Thursday.

The case was registered at High Grounds Police Station in Bengaluru, Karnataka based on a complaint by one of the office-bearers of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee, they said.

A police officer said: “The FIR was registered under Sections 353 (2) (making, publishing or circulating a statement or report with false information, rumours, or alarming news), 192 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause a riot- if rioting be committed; if not committed) and 196 (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at High Grounds Police Station here.”

Attacking the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha over the statements about the condition of Sikhs in India, the Minister of State for Railways on Sunday said if those “manufacturing bombs” were supporting him, he is the “number one terrorist”.

Condemning the statement, the Congress had said Bittu was talking “like a senseless man.”

Earlier, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge posted a video of “his message to Prime Minister Narendra Modi” on X, highlighting the extremely objectionable, violent and indecent statements made by BJP leaders and their allies against the Leader of the Opposition.

Kharge said, “Indian culture is known throughout the world for non-violence, harmony and love.”

The Congress chief requested Modi to impose discipline and decorum on his leaders. “Instruct them to behave properly. Strict legal action should be taken for such statements so that Indian politics can be prevented from becoming degenerate. Nothing untoward happens. I trust that he will take the required action to stop these leaders from making violent statements immediately,” Kharge asserted in a video message.

“We have also written a letter on this subject, hope he will respond to that letter,” he added.

Meanwhile, responding to Kharge’s letter, BJP president JP Nadda accused Gandhi of having a history of abusing PM Modi and OBCs, and of siding with anti-India forces.

In a tit-for-tat response, Nadda cited his party’s own litany of complaints against the LoP and other Congress members for their choice of words against the Prime Minister.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday that the ongoing Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir is about choosing the future of the Union Territory, adding that urged people to cast their votes wisely and said they should ensure the political sunset of the Congress, NC and PDP, which have inflicted wounds in the region for years together.

“These elections are important to end the political legacy of the 3 families of Congress, NC and PDP which kept the state in ruins. To make this happen, the Lotus must bloom in Kashmir,” PM Modi said.

Addressing an election rally in Katra, PM Modi accused the Congress leadership of insulting Hindu gods and goddesses under a “well-thought-out conspiracy” and due to a “Naxal mindset”, and asked people “should they not be punished for this”?

Hitting out over Pakistan backing Congress’s stand on abrogation of Article 370 in the Union Territory, PM Modi said the people of Jammu and Kashmir might not be enthused by the manifesto of Congress and NC, but Pakistan seems to be celebrating it.

This was the second election rally addressed by the prime minister in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday and third in a week. He addressed another rally in Srinagar earlier in the day. On September 14, PM Modi had addressed a rally in Doda district.

“This election is for choosing the future of Jammu and Kashmir. This election is meant to take the ‘new Jammu and Kashmir’ to new heights,” the prime minister said while urging the voters to ensure the BJP’s victory in the polls.

Last year, over two crore tourists visited Jammu and Kashmir and over 90 lakh pilgrims came “here to seek blessings of Maa Vaishno Devi,” said Prime Minister. This influx of people has immensely benefitted the locals, he added.

In the upcoming years, the tourism sector is going to further expand in the valley, which will create a ripple effect for the overall economy of the state, he said.

Modi’s rallies in Srinagar and Katra came a day after the first phase of polling in the Assembly election, covering 24 constituencies in seven south Kashmir districts and the Chenab valley region, and registering more than 61 per cent voting.