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Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday accused the Opposition parties of "appeasement" politics, criticising their move to impeach Justice GR Swaminathan of the Madras High Court's Madurai Bench.
Amit Shah, who made the remarks during the reply to the debate in Lok Sabha on electoral reforms, said that this has never happened in all the years after independence that a judge is facing impeachment for a judgment. "This has never happened in all the years after independence that a judge is facing impeachment for delivering a judgment. They brought the impeachment to appease thier vote bank," he said. He expressed surprise that Shiv Sena (UBT) had also signed the petition. The Home Minister said the judgment is that there's a custom to light a lamp at the hilltop. Over 100 INDIA bloc MPs from the Lok Sabha submitted a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla regarding an impeachment motion against Justice Swaminathan, who ordered Subramaniya Swamy temple authorities to light a traditional lamp at a stone pillar near a dargah, atop a hillock in Tamil Nadu. Justice Swaminathan's move drew criticism from the DMK-led Tamil Nadu government, which accused the judge of being "biased." Earlier, DMK MP Kanomozhi justified the INDIA bloc's move to impeach Madras High Court Judge alleging "biased judgements on lines of religion" and "partiality towards certain lawyers." "We've seen that his judgments have been biased on the lines of religion and creating differences in people and also been partial towards certain lawyers. It's a secular country, and the constitution says that everybody is equal, whatever religion they belong to; they are equal before the law. I think the judicial system, the judiciary too, has to ensure that the people get justice, and there's no difference in that," the DMK leader told ANI. An unrest broke out during the Hindu festival of Karthigai Deepam last week, when activists from right-wing groups clashed with police. The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court had earlier directed that the lamp be lit at the hilltop temple. Acting on a petition filed by a right-wing activist, Justice GR Swaminathan had instructed state authorities to ensure that the sacred lamp was lit atop the hill. However, government officials maintained that this violated the longstanding practice of lighting the lamp at the nearby Deepa Mandapam, a ritual observed for several years. (ANI)
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