A controversial post targeting Chief Justice of India Surya Kant from the official Congress Keralam account on X went viral on Monday, drawing sharp criticism before it was deleted. The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) subsequently removed the person responsible for managing the account from the charge.
KPCC president Sunny Joseph said the post was published without the knowledge, consent or consultation of the state party leadership. He said the committee would examine the circumstances under which the message was posted.
Clarifying the party’s position, Joseph said the Congress had no disagreement with the impartiality of the judiciary. He added that social media posts expressing views contrary to this position did not reflect the stand of the KPCC leadership.
The controversy drew a sharp response from Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, who shared a screenshot of the deleted post and accused the Congress of targeting constitutional institutions.
“I had warned earlier that the judiciary would be the next target of the Congress,” Rijiju said, adding that the party wanted to destroy India's constitutional and democratic institutions. He also said that “all patriotic Indians” would come together against what he described as anti-India forces.
The episode comes amid heightened political exchanges between the Congress and the BJP over the judiciary and allegations of irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, have repeatedly raised allegations of “vote chori”, while the party has sought judicial intervention over concerns surrounding the revision of electoral rolls.
(With inputs from PTI)