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The Chief Justice of India Surya Kant's office denied a false casteist statement attributed to him on social media, calling it ‘vile and mischievous’. The office clarified that Justice Surya Kant never made the remarks circulating online.
CJI Surya Kant condemns viral fake casteist quote falsely attributed to him (HT Photo)(HT_PRINT)The Chief Justice of India Surya Kant's office on Saturday strongly refuted a casteist statement being circulated on social media, describing it as “vile, brazen and mischievous.” He appealed to citizens to check sources before believing such allegations and warned that those responsible could face legal action.
The clarification came after a controversial post on X falsely attributed the remarks to the Chief Justice through the account @UnreservedMERIT.
In an official press release, the CJI’s office said Justice Surya Kant had condemned the fabricated statement and emphasised that he had never made the remarks being circulated online.
Terming the incident as a serious ethical violation, the Chief Justice’s office said the social media account had falsely attributed the statement to him.
The official press release added that the circulation of such misinformation amounted to a direct attack on the integrity of the judiciary.
“The Office of Hon'ble the Chief Justice of India condemns in the strongest possible terms this vile, brazen, and mischievous concoction. To manufacture a fictitious quote and to attribute it to the highest judicial office of the land is an act of rank dishonesty, deliberate social incitement, and contempt for constitutional values,” it stated.
Calling the actions of certain social media users reckless, the CJI’s office said such conduct undermines the very basis of public confidence in the judiciary and the rule of law. The office also appealed to citizens, media organisations and social media platforms not to circulate or promote fabricated and misleading content.
"The Office of Hon'ble the Chief Justice of India calls upon all responsible citizens, media organisations, and social media platforms to refrain from amplifying false and contrived content", it said.
The Chief Justice said he was prepared to use the full force of the law to ensure that the perpetrators were held accountable for spreading falsehoods, according to Bar and Bench.
"I am prepared to bring the full might of the law to bear on the perpetrators and ensure that they face the repercussions of their mendacity," the Chief Justice stated.
What did the fabricated post say by account @UnreservedMERIT?
“If a community chooses to see itself as oppressed even after producing IAS officers, IPS officers, Chief Justices of India, Presidents, and Prime Ministers, then the fault lies not with Brahmins but with its own mindset,” the post (translated from Hindi to English) stated. It also reportedly featured a photograph of the Chief Justice along with the caption, “Chief Justice of India".
It reportedly garnered more than 16,900 views.
About the Author
Garvit Bhirani
Garvit Bhirani is a journalist based in Gurugram. He is a Deputy Chief Content Producer at LiveMint, where he covers national and international news stories, focusing on accuracy and compelling storytelling for readers. <br><br> With a total of six years of experience in journalism, he has previously worked with Vaco Binary Semantics for Google, taking on the role of news curation lead, and reported from the field on health, education, and agriculture stories for 101reporters and News9. He has also served as a content editor for entertainment and news media organisations. <br><br> Garvit holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism and mass communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and Gurugram University, respectively. During college days, he joined India’s only non-profit student journalism network, where he anchored daily news updates and produced his own weekly show called ‘Data Fix’. <br><br> He was selected for the YES Foundation Media for Social Change Fellowship in Delhi, the Talking Data to the Fourth Pillar residential workshop, and the VOICE Fellowship in Pune. <br><br> He holds certificates in COVID-19-verification reporting, data journalism, food & agriculture, tech policy, media literacy and countering misinformation, and tackling election disinformation courses from Thomson Foundation, IndiaSpend, The Dialogue, US Mission in India, and AFP. <br><br> He can be reached on <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/garvit-bhirani">LinkedIn</a> or on <a href="https://x.com/GarvitBhirani">@garvitbhirani</a> on X
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