I write to express deep concern over recent verdicts and remarks from the Supreme Court and certain judges regarding activists and environmental pleas. Activism exists when democratic pillars like politicians, the media, and the judiciary fail. The same was true during the British Raj. Our freedom fighters began as activists. The British too must have dismissed them as “cockroaches.”
We have seen the Court slam environmental activists’ pleas and in another incident one judge calling young activists “cockroaches” and stating that such pleas hinder development. When the capital was gripped by a severe winter pollution crisis, the Supreme Court Bar Association organised a morning run on November 20, 2025. The Court then ordered a ban on an NCERT social science book because a chapter discussed judicial corruption. This came after the March 2025 incident involving Delhi High Court Judge Yashwant Varma, at whose official residence substantial amounts of cash were discovered following a fire. “Development” is a word often exploited by politicians to cover corrupt projects. Dismissing activism and vilifying those who petition the courts erodes public trust. I urge wider public debate on this disturbing trend.
