Deity remark row: “I respect all religions”, CJI B R Gavai offers clarification

Facing severe backlash on social media, with some users and Hindu groups accusing him of mocking their faith and hurting religious sentiments, Chief Justice of India B R Gavai on Thursday came out with a clarification over his oral remarks and got support from one of the top law officers of the country.
The outrage and criticism prompted Justice Gavai to issue a clarification that he respects all religions and believes in secularism, and his comments were “misportrayed on social media.”
His clarifications were supported by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who criticized the tendency of social media to distort statements and create “disproportionate” reactions.
The controversy stems from a petition filed in the Supreme Court seeking the reconstruction of a damaged, 7-foot idol of Lord Vishnu at the Javari Temple, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Khajuraho temple complex in Madhya Pradesh.
It was reported that during the hearing, a bench led by CJI Gavai dismissed the plea, referring to it as a “publicity interest litigation.”
Justice Gavai told the petitioner, “Go and ask the deity himself to do something. If you are saying that you are a strong devotee of Lord Vishnu, then you pray and do some meditation.”
He added that since the temple is an archaeological site, the matter falls under the jurisdiction of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), and the court cannot intervene.
The CJI also had said if the petitioner was “not averse to Shaivism,” they could go and worship at a big Shiva temple located in Khajuraho.
Since the issue has snowballed into a major controversy, Justice Gavai, on Thursday, tried to clear the air, saying, “Someone told me the other day that the comments I made have been portrayed in social media…I respect all religions.”
Solicitor General, who was present when the CJI made the clarification in the post-lunch session, said, “We used to learn Newton’s law – for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Now with the advent of social media, we have a new rule ‘For every action, there is a wrong and disproportionate social media overreaction.”
Agreeing with the CJI about how he was misquoted regarding the Lord Vishnu idol in Khajuraho, Mehta said, “It is unfortunate that it is made viral based upon totally incorrect information attributing something to the CJI which was taken completely out of context.”
The Solicitor General said he has known the CJI for the last 10 years. He said CJI visits all religious places with equal reverence and would not even think of insulting any deity,
Justice Vinod Chandran also shared the ill effects of uninformed social media posts, citing his own example when he recused in one of the matters due to an appearing lawyer. Justice Chandran said social media is, in fact, social media.
Sanjay Nuli, Senior Advocate who appeared for the petitioner in the Khajuraho matter, also expressed serious concern over wrong social media posts, clarifying that CJI never said what is wrongly attributed to him.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal said, “We suffer every day… it (social media) is an unruly horse, no way to tame it.The CJI said, “In Nepal also, it happened that way.”