A day after coming under fire for a post on X lauding the lawyer who allegethurled a shoe at Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, Karnataka BJP leader and former IPS officer Bhaskar Rao tendered an apology Wednesday. He expressed regret after his post in response to a fake profile by the name of Rakesh Kishore, the lawyer involved in the incident, attracted condemnation on social media platforms. On Tuesday, responding to a post by the fake profile, Rao wrote, "Even if it is Legally & Terribly Wrong, I admire your courage, at your age, to take a stand and live by it, irrespective of Consequences." Even if it is Legally & Terribly Wrong, I admire your courage, at your age, to take a stand and live by it, irrespective of Consequences 🙏 — Bhaskar Rao (@Nimmabhaskar22) October 7, 2025 With the former Bengaluru Commissioner of Police attracting criticism for justifying the act by Kishore, he apologised for his post. However, he did not remove the initial post made by him. On Wednesday, Rao wrote on X, "My reaction was one of aghast and shock that a person, despite being so highly educated, Aged and experienced such an action knowing fully the Consequences of a Terribly and Legally Wrong Act. I have not insulted the Supreme Court, nor Chief Justice or any Community. If my tweet has angered or hurt, I am sorry." My reaction was one of aghast and shock that a person, despite being so highly educated, Aged and experienced such an action knowing fully the Consequences of a Terribly and Legally Wrong Act. , I have not insulted the Supreme Court, nor Chief Justice or any Community. If my… — Bhaskar Rao (@Nimmabhaskar22) October 8, 2025 Among those criticising his initial post was Karnataka Youth Congress president Manjunatha HS. In response to the post, he wrote, "So this is what “courage” has come to mean — defending a man who threw a shoe at the Chief Justice of India! Once a celebrated cop, now applauding contempt for the judiciary. From enforcing law to endorsing lawlessness — what an incredible fall from grace!" Rao's clarification also attracted similar responses. An X user under the name Rangan Mathu, replied to his apology saying that people were surprised and anguished that such violent acts were applauded by a former police officer. "With such mindset you handled the law and order. People aren't able to digest the fact," he said. Rao is a 1990-batch IPS officer who served as Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru between 2019-2020. He applied for voluntary retirement from service in 2021 and joined Aam Aadmi Party in 2022. Less than a year later, he resigned from the party to join the BJP in 2023 ahead of the Assembly polls in the state.
