CJI: Original Sabarimala PIL Should have Been ‘Thrown in the Dustbin’

In a sharp critique during the Sabarimala reference hearing, a nine-judge Bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant questioned the legitimacy of the original 2006 PIL.

The CJI remarked that the petition, allegedly based on sensationalist news reports, should have been "thrown outright in the dustbin."

The Bench expressed serious concerns over the locus standi of the Indian Young Lawyers Association, with Justice M.M. Sundresh calling it an "abuse of the process of law."

Justice B.V. Nagarathna further questioned how a juristic body could claim "freedom of conscience," labeling the case an example of "Publicity Interest Litigation" rather than a genuine pursuit of public interest.