SC pulls up Prashant Bhushan for 'insulting' apex court, its judges

During a hearing of a plea seeking directions to allow the stranded migrant workers, who have tested negative for Coronavirus, to return to their home lands amid the lockdown, Bhushan had a heated exchange with Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.

While Bhushan, who was arguing that the interests of the migrant workers must be safeguarded, cited a The Hindu report claiming the stranded labourers were not getting rations or fundamental rights, Mehta rubbished the media report.

Amid the argument, Mehta referred to an old tweet of Bhushan who had said in the micro-blogging site, "I have watched the Supreme Court since the Emergency. The kind of abject surrender to the govt that we are seeing today was not seen even during the Emergency. Most judges have totally forgotten their oath to protect the Constitution & fundamental rights of people. Pathetic!"

Reacting to the tweet, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul said as quoted by Times Now, " Everytime there is an order in which you do not get any relief, you insult the institution..you cast aspersions on the judges ...you don’t have any respect for constitutional bodies. You don’t have any faith in the judiciary”

Justice B R Gavai said, "If you don’t have faith in this institution, why should we hear you at all ?”

Rejecting the allegation, Bhushan said, "I was not being disrespectful  in any manner. But Government's views are being blindly accepted. I am only expressing my anguish. I feel government’s assertions are being believed without verification. The court is accepting whatever the government is stating without verifying."