'Manipulating Democracy, Bullying Institutions': Congress's Sharp Response To PM's Scathing Tweet

‘manipulating democracy, bullying institutions’: congress’s sharp response to pm’s scathing tweet

New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of “manipulating democracy” and “bullying institutions” after hundreds of lawyers penned a letter to Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud expressing concerns over attempts to undermine the judiciary’s integrity using political and professional pressure. The strongly-worded reaction came after PM Modi targetted the Congress over the letter, accusing the party “bullying” the judiciary.

Responding to PM Modi’s ‘vintage Congress culture remark, Mallikarjun Kharge said on X, “PM Narendra Modi ji, You are talking about Judiciary. You conveniently forget that 4 senior-most Supreme Court judges were forced to hold an unprecedented press conference and warn against ‘destruction of Democracy’. That happened under your regime.”

“One of the judges was nominated by your Government to the Rajya Sabha. So who wants a ‘committed judiciary’,” he asked.

Posing few more questions for PM Modi, Kharge targeted the PM for bringing down the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC).

“Modi ji, Institution after Institution is being ‘bullied’ by you into submission, so stop pinning the blame on the Congress party, for your own sins! You have mastered the art of manipulating Democracy and hurting the Constitution,” he said in his response.

PM Modi’s remarks on letter to the CJI

Earlier in the day, PM Modi took a dig at Congress by saying that “to browbeat and bully others is vintage Congress culture.”

“To browbeat and bully others is vintage Congress culture. 5 decades ago itself they had called for a “committed judiciary” – they shamelessly want commitment from others for their selfish interests but desist from any commitment towards the nation,” PM Modi tweeted.

” No wonder 140 crore Indians are rejecting them,” the Prime Minister added while tagging a post on X that shared the letter written by lawyers to the chief justice.

PM Modi’s tweet came after 600 lawyers wrote a letter to Chief Justice expressing concerns over attempts to undermine the judiciary’s integrity using political and professional pressure..

The letter titled ‘Judiciary Under Threat – Safeguarding Judiciary From Political and Professional Pressure’ has been signed by prominent lawyers including senior advocate Harish Salve, Manan Kumar Mishra, Adish Aggarwala, Chetan Mittal, Pinky Anand, Hitesh Jain, Ujjwala Pawar, Uday Holla and Swaroopama Chaturvedi, Bar Council of India’s Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra, Supreme Court Bar Association President Adish Aggarwala, among others.

In the letter, the lawyers claimed that the group is employing pressure tactics to influence judicial outcomes, especially in cases involving political figures and corruption allegations. They further added that the actions by the group pose a significant threat to the democratic fabric and the trust placed in judicial processes, reported ANI.

The lawyers also highlighted that the group is propagating false narratives about a ‘golden era’ of the judiciary, aimed at discrediting current proceedings and undermining public confidence in the courts. The accusations include ‘bench fixing’, disrespectful comparisons of domestic courts to those in lawless regimes, and direct attacks on judges’ honour.

The letter further alleged that the tactics employed by the interest group involve selective criticism or praise of court decisions based on their political agenda, described as a “My way or the highway” approach.