SC Advocates Get Threatening Calls Over PM Security Breach

Supreme Court lawyer Nishant Katneshwarkar received an automated call on Monday morning allegedly made by banned terror group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) threatening to "blast" Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 26 and "raise Khalistan".

The caller also said it would not allow retired Supreme Court judge Indu Malhotra "to investigate the Modi terror plot" even as it threatened the advocates for filing a complaint in pursuance of the said call.

"…the issue was between Modi and Sikhs, but you have filed a complaint against SFJ and put yourself in a dangerous position," the automated call said. "Now we will hold anti-Sikh, anti-Muslim advocates accountable…," it added.

This is the fifth automated call received by Katneshwarkar and other Supreme Court advocates-on-record (AOR) on the issue of the security breach during PM Narendra Modi's January 5 visit to Punjab where his cavalcade was held up on the high way for more than 15 minutes due to protestors. However, this is the first time advocates were directly threatened.

An AOR is a lawyer empowered to file petitions in the Supreme Court. An AOR is designated as one by the Supreme Court after the clear the AOR exams.

Also Read: Security Lapse During PM Modi's Punjab Visit: Retd SC Judge To Probe

Advocates receive threatening calls over PM security breach

The automated call is a continuation of a series of calls, allegedly made by the Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), which began on January 10 when the Supreme Court was hearing a plea seeking a judicial probe in the security lapse during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's January 5 Punjab visit.

The second call was made on January 12, when the top court announced its decision to appoint its former judge Indu Malhotra as the head of the probe committee.

In the first call, lasting a little under a minute, the SFJ took responsibility for the security breach during Modi's January 5 Punjab visit where his cavalcade was held up on a highway for more than 15 minutes due to a protest.

The Supreme Court Advocates On Record Association (SCAORA) has taken note of the calls and written to the Supreme Court Secretary General seeking action against the caller. Deepak Prakash, an AOR, filed a criminal complaint with the Delhi Police hours after receiving the first call. Prakash received two calls today as well.

However, advocate Sriram Parakkat who also got these calls considered the incident to be "silly" and worthy of being ignored. Parakkat however expressed his apprehension over the phone number of AORs that are publicly available on the top court's website. "By doing so, these incidents could be avoided in future," Parakkat said.

Also Read: Security Breach During PM Modi's Punjab Visit: BJP, Congress Spar