Days after a 71-year-old advocate hurled a shoe at Chief Justice of India (CJI) B R Gavai inside the Supreme Court, the Delhi Police has deployed two additional security personnel outside Court No. 1, where the CJI presides over proceedings, in a bid to tighten security. This comes after Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golcha on Tuesday chaired a high-level review meeting with officers from the Security Division. The CJI enjoys Z-plus security cover provided by the Security Division of the Delhi Police. The incident in question occurred during mentioning hours on Monday, when the CJI was sitting with Justice K Vinod Chandran. Advocate Rakesh Kishore took off his sports shoes and threw them towards the CJI around 11.35 am. He was immediately detained by security personnel and later released after the CJI instructed the court’s Registrar General not to press charges. On Wednesday, a senior officer in the Security Division issued an internal order directing all personnel to factor in the threat of such acts into VVIP protection arrangements. The advisory instructed officers to take precautions against possible attempts at shoe-throwing, ink-splashing or hurling of objects during public events involving dignitaries. According to the directive, senior officers must brief their security teams and personal security officers to remain extra vigilant. “All security staff have been asked to heighten alertness in view of these potential disruptions,” a source told The Indian Express. Golcha's review meeting witnessed discussion on several matters pertaining to the Security Division and the overall security protocols at the Supreme Court. Following the deliberations, it was decided to strengthen the security arrangements around Court No. 1. Kishore had attempted to throw his shoe at the CJI to protest the latter’s remarks during the hearing of a plea seeking restoration of a Lord Vishnu idol in the Khajuraho Temple complex in Madhya Pradesh. He was also heard shouting, "Sanatan ka apman nahi sahenge (We will not tolerate the insult to Sanatan Dharma)." Presiding over a Bench with Justice K Vinod Chandran, CJI Gavai had made the remarks on September 16 while dismissing a plea seeking the reconstruction of a dilapidated 7-foot-tall Lord Vishnu idol at the Javari Temple in Khajuraho. “This purely publicity interest litigation. Go and ask the deity himself to do something. If you are saying that you are a strong devotee of Lord Vishnu, then you pray and do some meditation,” the CJI had told the petitioner. Kishore had claimed that he was “instructed by divine powers to act" during a phone call with reporters who were standing outside his house in Mayur Vihar.
