Plea before Allahabad High Court challenging impeachment motion against Justice SK Yadav

Days after Members of Parliament (MPs) led by Kapil Sibal submitted an impeachment motion against Allahabad High Court Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav for his controversial remarks, a plea has been filed before the Allahabad High Court challenging the motion..Advocate Asok Pande has approached the Court seeking a direction to the chairman of the Rajya Sabha to refrain from acting on the motion filed by Kapil Sibal and 54 other MPs against Justice Yadav.As per the plea,“Whatever Shekhar Kumar Yadav has said in this meeting of VHP (legal cell) was in the capacity of a Hindu who has gone to participate in a meeting of an organization to which he belongs. Whatever he said in this meeting was in the capacity of the follower of the Santan Hindu Dharm not as a judge sitting on the chair in the court room.” Justice Yadav's controversial remarks were made during a speech at a recent event organized by the legal cell of the right-wing organization Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP).The judge had made contentious statements against the Muslim community and had stated that India will function as per the wishes of the majority community. He had also used the term "kathmullah", which is used as a slur against Muslims..According to Pandey, the term Kathmullah used by Justice Yadav in his speech does not qualify as hate speech. "As an advocate and judge, he may have been aware of how Kathamullapan is preventing Muslim girls from attending school and college or how Muslim women are being compelled to wear the Hijab and Burqa by Kathamullas. He could be expressing grievance against the Kathamullapan of certain Muslims who, by standing with Babar, obstructed the construction of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi temple for a long time and continue to align with the actions of Aurangzeb at the Shri Kashi Vishwanath temple and the temple at Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi," the plea asserts..Notably, the motion, signed by 55 MPs, is expected to be addressed during the ongoing winter session of the parliament.The motion has alleged that the speech delivered by Justice Yadav prima facie constitutes hate speech and incitement to communal disharmony, in violation of the Constitution of India.The motion has further claimed that Justice Yadav has demonstrated bias and prejudice against minorities through his remarks, specifically targeting these communities..The MPs have requested Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar to forward the motion to the President of India, in accordance with the Judges (Inquiry) Act of 1968, to constitute an inquiry committee to investigate the charges of hate speech, communal disharmony and violation of judicial ethics, and to initiate appropriate proceedings for the removal of Justice Yadav from office if the allegations are proven.