"You are a comedy piece": Madras High Court judge to lawyer who accused him of communal, casteist bias

In an extraordinary courtroom exchange at the Madras High Court on Monday, Justice GR Swaminathan confronted Advocate Vanchinathan over his allegations of caste and communal bias against the judge, accusing the lawyer of launching a sustained and unfounded campaign to malign the judiciary.."You are a comedy piece," Justice Swaminathan remarked during the hearing, which was held before a Bench of himself and Justice K Rajasekar. "I don't know who called you all revolutionary. You are all comedy pieces."Justice Swaminathan made this statement after Vanchinathan refused to respond to his queries orally and urged the Court to pass a written order. .The hearing arose after the Court summoned Vanchinathan in connection with several social media posts and video interviews in which he allegedly accused Justice Swaminathan of acting with communal and caste prejudice in judicial decisions. In response, the Court sought to clarify whether the lawyer stood by these remarks or wished to retract them..Justice Swaminathan made it clear that while criticism of judgments is legitimate and acceptable, accusations of bias based on caste cross a line. “Mr. Vanchinathan, I 100 per cent respect your right to brutally criticise my judgments. But when you are alleging caste bias, things take a different turn.”The Court also referred to one of Vanchinathan’s interviews in which he reportedly claimed that the Court had targetted a senior lawyer because he belonged to a Dalit community, while not giving similar treatment to another senior lawyer because he was a Brahmin. The judge expressed concern over such sweeping and unsubstantiated public statements. The judge said,“For four years, you have been slandering me. I have not taken any action against you. We are also conscious of the rules of procedure. We are not fools. We will place the case before the Chief Justice or an appropriate bench. The whole ecosystem has ganged up—we are aware. We will not be intimidated or cowed down. Judicial independence is supreme.”.The Court's written order recorded that the lawyer appeared in person on July 25 and again on July 28. It noted that Vanchinathan's response was premised on the belief that the proceedings were linked to his complaint to the Chief Justice of India and other Supreme Court judges - a connection the Court firmly denied. The order stated,“We fail to understand on what basis such allegations have been made against this Court...We clarify once again that the proceedings against him have nothing to do with that complaint.”The Bench added that since several interviews by Vanchinathan were circulating on social media accusing one of the judges of being casteist, the Court had only sought to follow principles of natural justice by seeking clarification..“You have assumed two things that have no basis. First, this has nothing to do with the complaint you sent to the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India. Second, we have not initiated any contempt action till Friday. We only want to clarify your stance—whether you continue to allege caste and communal bias,” the Court noted..Certain retired Madras High Court judges - Justice K Chandru, Justice D Hariparanthaman, Justice CT Selvam, Justice Akbar Ali, Justice P Kalaiyarasan, Justice S Vimala, and Justice SS Sundar - meanwhile issued a statement which said that complaints against judicial conduct should be channeled through the Chief Justice rather than handled directly by the concerned judge. They urged the Bench led by Justice Swaminathan to refrain from taking action against Advocate Vanchinathan.Referring to this, the Court said, "While this matter is pending, it is most unfortunate that some retired judges are rendering opinions.".Justice Swaminathan orally expressed particular disappointment at Justice Sundar's participation in the letter. While Justice KK Sasidharan's name also initially featured in the statement, the retired judge has since distanced himself from the letter. .The Bench on Monday ultimately ordered that the case be placed before the Chief Justice for appropriate orders.As the hearing concluded, Justice Swaminathan made a parting remark: “I regretted calling you a coward. Now I do not regret at all.”.Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.