Lawyers' Body Protests Corporate-Sponsored Badminton Tournament Involving CJI, Over 100 Judges

New Delhi: The All India Lawyers Union (AILU) has condemned the participation of the Chief Justice of India and over 100 judges and lawyers in a corporate-sponsored badminton tournament held in London, calling it a "vulgar display" of inappropriate collaboration between the judiciary, the Law Ministry, and corporate entities.

The International Bar & Bench Badminton Tournament, co-sponsored by the Ministry of Law and Justice and several corporate bodies, drew sharp criticism from the lawyers' union, which termed the event a violation of the Bangalore Principles of Judicial Conduct 2002 and a threat to judicial independence.

"This is a violent negation of the Bangalore Principles of Judicial Conduct 2002 and a compromising of the principles of independence of judiciary," the AILU said in a statement, warning that such events would erode public faith in the judiciary and cause "severe deleterious impact on democracy."

The union also questioned the financial propriety of the event, asking who would bear the substantial travelling and other expenses of judges attending the London tournament — particularly in light of austerity measures declared by the Government of India and observed by the Supreme Court.

AILU described the event as "badminton diplomacy" by the Union Government aimed at drawing the judiciary closer to the executive, and said such involvement of corporates, government, and judges would raise serious doubts about the independence of the judiciary.