'Attempts to build a certain narrative': Justice Reddy on bids to call him pro-Maoism

New Delhi, Aug 23 (IANS) Former Supreme Court Judge (Retd) B. Sudershan Reddy, the Opposition’s candidate for the Vice Presidential election next month, on Saturday dismissed allegations of having a pro-Maoism outlook, dismissing such remarks as “attempts to build a certain narrative”.

“I have not done anything in the past that would make anyone label me as a supporter of Naxalism,” Justice Reddy told IANS.

“Calling me a Naxalite supporter has no basis,” he said, indicating that there could be some misconception about a particular judgment that he authored.

“That wasn’t even my judgment. I merely authored it, and it was a judgment of the Supreme Court. Three attempts were made to nullify it, all of which failed. A review petition was filed and also dismissed,” said Justice Reddy.

The 79-year-old former apex court judge said those making such comments, perhaps, didn’t get a chance to read the full judgment. “Maybe someone briefed them incorrectly or they are trying to build a certain narrative,” he said.

On Friday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah trained his guns on Justice Reddy, accusing him of having supported Maoism through his judicial pronouncements.

Speaking at a public event in Kochi, HM Shah referred to Justice Reddy's 2011 Salwa Judum judgment, which had declared as "illegal" and "unconstitutional" the state-sponsored arming of young tribal men as special police officers in Chhattisgarh.

The ruling ordered that such militias be disbanded, stressing that the state must address the root causes of the insurgency through lawful governance rather than vigilante groups.

Revisiting that verdict, the Home Minister alleged the judgment indirectly strengthened Maoist extremists and curtailed the state's ability to counter insurgency.

"Sudershan Reddy is the person who helped Naxalism. He gave the Salwa Judum judgment. If that judgment had not been given, Naxal terrorism would have ended by 2020," the Home Minister said.

--IANS

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