Saurav Das faces Madras HC notice over plea to cancel passport, Aadhaar, block X account

New Delhi: The Madras High Court on Friday issued notices to Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) leader Saurav Das and several government authorities over a petition seeking an investigation into his background, cancellation of his passport and Aadhaar card and blocking of his social media accounts.

The plea was filed by Kanchipuram resident R Ganesh Kumar alleging that Das made derogatory remarks against the judiciary including the Chief Justice of India and other Supreme Court judges. It also seeks directions to prevent him from making further statements against the judiciary.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G Arul Murugan heard the petition and issued notices to the respondents. The court has made the notices returnable in six weeks and adjourned the matter. It did not make any findings on the allegations.

What does plea against Saurav Das seek?

The petitioner has sought a detailed investigation into Das’s background and that of his family members. The plea specifically calls for an inquiry into his mother and biological father, who, according to the petition, reside in Puducherry. It also asks the authorities to cancel his passport and Aadhaar card if the investigation establishes grounds for such action.

The petition further seeks directions to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to block Das’s accounts on X and Instagram and restrain him from making further remarks allegedly targeting the judiciary.

The respondents named in the case include the Union Home Ministry, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Law and Justice, UIDAI, Regional Passport Office in Chennai and the grievance officers of X and Instagram.

Advocate B Jagannath, appearing for the petitioner, told the court that he had previously approached the authorities with a complaint but no action had been taken.

CJP leader Ashutosh Ranka reacts to court notice

While reacting to the development, CJP leader Ashutosh Ranka called it a “moment of collective shame”.

“Hounding someone just because you can’t stand their work – to what extent are we going to tolerate all of this?” he wrote in a post on X. The matter will be taken up again after six weeks, when the respondents are expected to respond to the notices issued by the court.