Modi Condemnation No Bar, Pro-Hindutva Right Wing Handles Continue Targeting CJI Gavai

New Delhi: The attack on Chief Justice of India (CJI) B.R. Gavai on Monday (October 6) after a shoe was hurled at him in the name of ‘sanatan dharma’ may have been described by solicitor general Tushar Mehta as a “result of misinformation on social media”, but the attack which came following weeks of pro-Hindutva right wing anger has shown no signs of abatement. Pro-Hindutva right wing influencers have continued with their tirade against the CJI for being “anti-Hindu”, posting casteist imagery as posts, and even accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who issued a late condemnation on Monday night, of not speaking up against the CJI’s “anti-Hindu” remarks, and becoming an Ambedkarite.

The most clear casteist character of this attack has been laid bare by an AI generated video on X (formerly Twitter) posted by a right wing influencer Kikki Singh. The video purportedly shows Gavai with an earthen pot around his head-a depiction of centuries-old caste based humiliation subjected to Dalits who were meant to collect their spit in the pot and not let it drop to the ground.

The video shows this AI generated image of Gavai, his face painted in blue, being slapped by a shoe. The tweet, posted on social media on Monday, just hours after the attack is yet to be deleted. The account has nearly 30,000 followers and the post itself has been reposted over 2000 times.

The video also depicts Kishore who had hurled a shoe at the CJI, after being reportedly angry over his recent remarks during the hearing of a PIL seeking restoration of a Lord Vishnu idol in the Khajuraho Temple complex in Madhya Pradesh. The PIL sought to restore a dilapidated statue of Lord Vishnu in one of the heritage sites in Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh. While dismissing it as a stunt, Justice Gavai had remarked, “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.”

Singh who posted the AI generated video shortly after the attack said: “The Supreme Court's oppression had exceeded the limit. Releasing rapists is toying with the sentiments of Hindus. Then Rakesh Kishore came and gave the answer.”

Kishore meanwhile on Tuesday (October 7) has appeared on various news outlets and said that he feels “no remorse” for his actions, and that he acted “in the name of God”.

In an interview to news agency ANI, said that he himself could be a Dalit, and the fact that Justice Gavai had accepted Buddhism shows that he no longer is a Dalit.

“My name is Dr Rakesh Kishore. Can someone tell my caste?  Maybe I am a Dalit too. It is a one-sided statement that you are taking advantage of the fact that he is a Dalit. He is not a Dalit. He was a Sanatani, he was a Hindu Dalit first. He then left everything and accepted Buddhism. If he feels that he has come out of Hinduism after following Buddhism, then how are you a Dalit? This is about mentality,” he said.

Kishore’s actions have unsurprisingly found support from the very right wing pro-Hindutva groups that were party to the campaign on social media targeting the CJI prior to the attack, and which have continued to justify the attack on him as “anti-Hindu”.

Shortly after the attack on Monday, pro-Hindutva YouTuber Ajeet Bharti took to X and said that the attack on Gavai was only the beginning.

"This is the beginning. If such depraved, anti-Hindu, and cowardly judges express the venom of their hearts, contrary to what is written in their orders, to demean Hindus, the same will happen to them on the streets.”

Here's how Right Wing influencer backend by the BJP leaders is Inciting mob violence against CJI BR Gavi. https://t.co/5jjUGH68TX pic.twitter.com/toChaD5SY0

— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) October 6, 2025

While the tweet now appears to have been deleted, founder of Mission Ambedkar, Suraj Kumar Bauddh, has written a letter to the Attorney General of India R. Venkatramani seeking permission to initiate criminal contempt proceedings against him and religious orator Aniruddhacharya aka Aniruddh Ram Tiwari for making videos threatening the CJI prior to the attack.

The Wire Hindi has reported that a concerted hate campaign was underway against Justice Gavai’s remarks, weeks before the attack took place as the hashtag #ImpeachCJI began to trend and pro-Hindutva handles criticised him for hurting Hindu sentiments. Two days after CJI Gavai’s remarks in court, on September 18, Bharti had called the CJI a "lousy judge, tainted with Hindu hatred” following his remarks on Lord Vishnu.

He then drew a parallel with Hiranyakashipu who had mocked his son Prahlad's devotion to Vishnu and was destroyed. "You are only an Ambedkarite human," Bharti had said.

The social media campaign targeting Justice Gavai has been acknowledged by SG Mehta who said that the attack was a result of “misinformation on social media.”

“I have personally seen Chief Justice visiting religious places of all religions with full reverence. The Chief Justice has also clarified this position.  It is not understood what promoted one miscreant to do what he did today.  It appears to be an act of some attention seeker wanting cheap publicity,” Bar and Bench reported him as saying.

Despite this, the social media campaign continued. Following the attack, in another post, Bharti reposted a tweet from legal portal LiveLaw which did not name the object thrown at Justice Gavai and said: "Writing 'object' for shoes will not save respect".

The Jat Association, a handle with 115,000 followers has in a  post asked whether the status of a CJI is "higher than 100 crore Hindus of the country."

On Monday night, OpIndia posted a video on the incident with the caption that “Gavai is a man with a loose tongue and he should apologise to the nation.”

In the video, OpIndia editor-in-chief Nupur J. Sharma says that Gavai's remarks were "pure insolence against Hindus knowing that he would not face any substantial consequences for his statement."

Sharma said that it was a "misuse of his position of power" and the attempted violence, though unfortunate, was not against the institution of the judiciary but "against a man who took it upon himself to mock the faith of Hindus unilaterally."

Sharma further said that the "attempted violence" was an expression of the "helplessness of the Hindu community.”

Pro-Hindutva anger targets PM Modi

While political parties across the board had condemned the attack on the CJI shortly after the incident, the BJP remained silent. Modi only issued a statement on Monday night in which he said he had spoken to the CJI and called the incident "utterly condemnable" but made no mention of the reason for the attack or its casteist nature.

The prime minister’s condemnation also did not quell the pro-Hindutva users on social media as right wing handles took to the comments under his post to reflect their anger. The comments accused him of not speaking up when Justice Gavai spoke against Vishnu and becoming an Ambedkarite.

"Please speak about yourself, not on behalf of every Indian. No comments on what CJI Gavai said on Vishnu but quick to throw a lawyer not tolerating insult against Vishnu under the bus. U can only be a leader of the bhim army not Hindus," wrote the handle SagasofBharat, which has over 54,000 followers.

"Sir, any view on the motive behind the attack, or was that not angering enough for you to speak up?" wrote the handle The Skin Doctor that has over 876,000 followers.

"When the CJI insulted Shri Vishnu, you didn’t utter a single word. But now when someone just threw a shoe at him, you’re suddenly calling him and showing concern? Where was this energy when he insulted the entire Hindu community? From now on Stop pretending to be a Hindu  everyone knows you’ve become an Ambedkarite at heart," wrote another user named Garvit Sethi.

The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.