Who in India uses maternal grandfather's surname? Congress hits back at PM Modi
New Delhi, Feb 10: Asking who in India uses their maternal grandfather's surname, the Congress on Friday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his remarks on the Gandhis not using the Nehru name and said he doesn't have the basic understanding of Indian culture.
"Only god can save the country," AICC general secretary Randeep Surjewala told reporters a day after Modi, in a speech in the Rajya Sabha, asked why the Gandhis were ashamed of using the Nehru surname.
"Someone who is sitting on such a responsible position does not know or understand the culture of India...will speak like this.... You can ask any person in the country, who uses maternal grandfather's surname?" Surjewala told a press conference at the party headquarters in the presence of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
"If he does not even have this basic understanding of India's culture, then only God can save this country," Surjewala said.
In his speech in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, Prime Minister Modi targeted the Congress which has criticised the government for ignoring Jawaharlal Nehru's efforts in nation-building.
"...if Nehru ji's name is left out by us, we would correct our mistake as he was the first prime minister of the country. But I do not understand why anyone from his clan is afraid of keeping Nehru surname? Is there any shame in having the Nehru surname? What is the shame? When the family is not ready to accept such a great personality, why do you keep questioning us," he said.
The prime minister also criticised Nehru and former prime minister Indira Gandhi for repeatedly using Article 356 of the Constitution to topple state governments led by non-Congress parties.
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K’taka HC judge whose controversial remarks triggered controversy expresses regret before open court
Bengaluru: Karnataka High Court judge, Justice V Srishananda, on Saturday expressed regret in open court after facing backlash over his controversial remarks in his recent court hearings, reported Bar and Bench.
Two purported video clips from Justice V Srishananda’s court hearing that show him making inappropriate comments went viral across social media platforms.
On Saturday, Justice Srishananda invited members of the Advocates Association, Bengaluru, and senior lawyers to his courtroom at 2:30 PM, where he read out a note expressing regret for inappropriate comments.
Quoting Advocates Association President Vivek Subba Reddy, Bar and Bench wrote, “He expressed regret for the comments and clarified that it was not his intention to offend any community or members of the Bar. He also requested the association to relay this message to all members of the Bar.”
Reddy further stated, “We also advised him to encourage young lawyers in the courtroom and refrain from making any irrelevant remarks during hearings.”
Another senior lawyer present during the session confirmed to the legal news portal that Justice Srishananda also addressed comments directed at a woman lawyer, who was seen in one of the videos being reprimanded by the judge. The judge Justice Srishananda clarified that his remarks were not intended to target her (woman lawyer) specifically, but rather pertained to the appellant she was representing. “He explained that his comment was meant to imply that the appellant seemed to know a lot about the other party,” said the lawyer.
In addition, Justice Srishananda assured those present that he would avoid making such comments in the future.
The controversy came to light on September 19, when a video clip from an August 28 Court hearing surfaced on social media, showing Justice Srishananda referring to a Muslim-majority sub-locality in Bengaluru’s Goripalya as "Pakistan." Hours later, another video from the same courtroom emerged, in which the judge was seen making a gender-insensitive remark.
Following outrage over the viral videos, a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, along with Justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, Surya Kant, and Hrishikesh Roy, on September 20 took a suo motu cognizance and sought a report from the Karnataka High Court Registrar General in connection with the viral video.
