The Supreme Court on Thursday said that it was better to let the attack on Chief Justice BR Gavai “die a natural death” rather than fuel its “monetisation” on social media, reported Bar and Bench.

The statement by a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi came after Supreme Court Bar Association President Vikas Singh told the court that Attorney General R Venkataramani had given his consent to initiate criminal contempt proceedings against advocate Rakesh Kishore, who allegedly attempted to throw a shoe at Gavai.

“This shoe-throwing incident cannot go unnoticed like this,” said Singh. “This person [Kishore] has no remorse.”

Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta agreed with Singh and added: “Some action was needed.”

The consent of the attorney general or the solicitor general is required before the Supreme Court can hear a criminal contempt petition filed by a private individual.

Singh urged the court to list the matter for Friday. However, the bench decided to take it up after the Diwali break, which would begin on October 20, reported The Indian Express.

On October 6, Kishore allegedly tried to throw a shoe at Gavai and accused him of having insulted Hinduism. Kishore said he was angered by the chief justice’s remarks on the restoration of a beheaded idol of Hindu deity Vishnu, and on the Supreme Court judgement holding punitive demolitions as unconstitutional.

Despite the interruption, Gavai remained calm, instructed the court to proceed, and later described the event as a “forgotten chapter”.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court questioned if it was wise to intervene in the matter when the chief justice “has shown magnanimity and it shows that the institution is not affected as such”.

“The way this social media is being uncontrollably used…Some are making a glory out of this,” the solicitor general responded. “And some are speaking of his [Kishore’s] courage. This is about the institution. It cannot go on.”

However, the judges warned that initiating contempt proceedings could inadvertently give further publicity to the episode. Bagchi remarked that social media algorithms thrive on monetising outrage, The Indian Express reported.

“The algorithm in the social media platform is to promote it so that as soon as you access that platform it will be up on your screen,” he said. “In these situations, we assure you that your mentioning today is going to be monetised…Please do not operate to their monetisation. Allow it to have a natural death.”

The bench also said that the court is “overburdened” and the time spent on this matter could be dedicated to “cases where persons are in jail or want bail”, reported Bar and Bench.

Singh urged the court to take up the matter on Friday, stating that by then, the bench may “take a thought about it and may modulate the order accordingly”, according to The Indian Express.

Listing the matter for after the Diwali break, Kant said: “Let us see what will happen in a week. Are they still left with some saleable item.”

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