Man tries to throw shoe at CJI BR Gavai during court proceedings, detained

The shoe did not reach the bench, and security personnel immediately intervened. The man was detained and escorted out of the courtroom.

As he was being taken away, the man reportedly shouted, “India will not tolerate the insult of Sanatan Dharma,” India Today reported.

CJI Gavai appeared unfazed by the incident. “I am the last person to be affected by such things,” he was quoted as saying by NDTV.

Reports said the man possessed a proximity card — an access pass issued to lawyers and clerks in the Supreme Court — and was identified through it as “Kishore Rakesh.” His motive remains unclear.

Senior advocate Indira Jaising condemned the incident and called for a full investigation. “This requires a detailed investigation. The lawyer must be named, and legal action taken against him. This appears to be a blatant casteist attack on the Supreme Court of India,” she wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

She added that the incident “deserves to be condemned by all judges of the Supreme Court through a united statement that ideological attacks will not be tolerated.”

The incident came days after CJI Gavai faced criticism over his reported remarks on Lord Vishnu during a hearing on a petition seeking judicial intervention for the reconstruction of a beheaded idol in Khajuraho. According to NDTV, the CJI said, “Go and ask the deity himself to do something.”