Overview

• The division bench formally placed S Vanchinathan’s allegations before the court’s chief justice and suspended any contempt action pending his written reply.
• In June, Vanchinathan lodged a 38-page petition under the Supreme Court’s in-house procedure accusing Justice G R Swaminathan of favouring Brahmin lawyers and exhibiting ideological bias.
• During hearings from July 24 to 28, Justice Swaminathan summoned the advocate to court, threatened contempt and publicly rebuked him as a “comedy piece.”
• Eight retired Madras High Court judges issued a rare joint appeal urging the bench to defer action until the chief justice reviews the complaint.
• Vanchinathan has filed a police complaint over the leak of his confidential petition via a BJP-affiliated WhatsApp group, which is now under investigation.