Man hurls papers at Supreme Court Bench after incoherent submissions

The Supreme Court on Friday, July 10, 2026, decided not to take action against a man who threw a stack of papers at the podium during the hearing.

A litigant addressed the Supreme Court Bench of Justices K V Viswanathan and Alok Aradhe incoherently for several minutes before throwing a sheaf of papers on the bench earlier in the day (July 10, 2026). Newspapers blew up in the courtroom. Security personnel quickly grabbed the man and led him away, as the two judges and the courtroom looked on in surprise.

The man, identified as Prabal Pratap, addressed the Bench as “Mr Judicial Officer” while “ordering” the judges to take action against a senior Lucknow-based police officer.

Justice Viswanathan initially intervened to ask the man whether he had actually “ordered” the bench. In response, the man gave a twisted answer about being “dominant” and then suddenly said, “It’s all by me. It’s all on record.” He then grabbed loose papers from a file and threw them towards the podium. Security guards intervened within minutes.

A court order issued in the evening announced the Panel’s decision not to take any action against Mr Pratap despite his “unparliamentary statements”.

In the decision to reject the petition, it was stated, “However, considering the situation of the above-mentioned petitioner, we do not propose to take any action against him. We have reviewed the records when it comes to the merits of this case and have found no good reason to interfere with the decision.”

The incident is reminiscent of a similar incident in October last year, when a lawyer threw an object at the bench headed by the then Chief Justice of India, Justice BR Gavai. The lawyer chanted “Sanatan Dharma” slogans as he was escorted out by security personnel.

Judge Gavai set the incident aside and refused to initiate defamation proceedings against the man.

In 2009, a woman threw a slipper at Judge Arijit Pashayat (now retired) during the hearing of a defamation case. The slipper missed the judge, who ducked in time. The woman was detained.

A more serious incident occurred in March 1968 in the courtroom of the Chief Justice of India when a knife-wielding man attacked the judges on the bench.

The then Chief Justice of India, Justice M. Hidayatullah, who was presiding over the bench, wrestled the attacker to the ground and held him until security personnel climbed the bench to catch him. At that time, the attacker attacked Judge AN Grover, who fell after a blow to the back of his head.