OPINION | Shoe Attack on CJI, Suicide by Dalit IPS: Social media’s role in amplifying caste divides and bigotry

Social media platforms are now becoming prisms through which deep-seated caste prejudices of Indian society are being magnified and weaponized.

The digital revolution was originally seen as a means to democratize expression — to give voice to the voiceless. Sadly, India’s social media landscape today often mirrors and amplifies its oldest fault lines, around caste and Dalits. Recent reactions to the shocking shoe attack on the Chief Justice of India and the tragic suicide of a Dalit IPS officer in Haryana have laid bare the ugly truth: social media is emerging as the newest arena for reviving Manuwadi mindsets under the guise of free speech.

On the surface, the two disturbing events — the shoe thrown at BR Gavai, India’s second Dalit Chief Justice, and the suicide of Y. Puran Kumar, a Dalit IG Police officer in Haryana — appear to be unrelated tragedies. But the abusive reactions they ignited on social media reveal a chilling connection. They reflect that social media platforms are now becoming prisms through which deep-seated caste prejudices of Indian society are being magnified and weaponized.

When CJI Gavai was attacked in court by a lawyer shouting slogans about “Sanatan Dharma” on October 6, the incident should have sparked universal outrage, as it symbolized an assault on judicial dignity. As advocate Rakesh Kishore hurled a shoe at CJI Gavai while screaming “Sanatan ka apmaan nahi sahenge” (We won’t tolerate any insult to Sanatan), it signified far more than a security breach in the apex court. The attack came just weeks after a bench headed by the CJI dismissed a plea seeking the restoration of a Lord Vishnu idol at the Khajuraho temple complex. Terming the plea as a “public interest litigation,” Gavai said, “Go and ask the deity himself to do something.” Hindutva hardliners were angered by these remarks, and Kishore tried to justify his attack in this context.

Though a portion of users expressed solidarity with Gavai and called it an assault on the judiciary, posts and videos glorifying the lawyer and blaming the CJI were circulated far more abundantly. Trolls mocked Gavai’s Dalit identity, circulated caste-based slurs, and portrayed him as ‘anti-Hindu,’ echoing exactly the kind of societal prejudice that BR Ambedkar had warned against. As social media turned into a battleground of shameful abuse, what was striking was not just the hate, but the impunity with which it was spread.

Social Media as a New Battleground for Caste-Based Hate

A co-ordinated campaign of hashtags and online criticism soon erupted against CJI Gavai. Hashtags targeting the CJI that trended on platforms like X (formerly Twitter) included #ImpeachCJI, #GavaiHinduVirodhiHai ("Gavai is anti-Hindu"), and #GavaiMustGo. In contrast, hashtags supporting the lawyer who threw the shoe included #RakeshKishoreZindabad and #DefenderOfSanatan, with the lawyer being hailed as a “patriot defending Sanatan values.” Right-wing influencers and allied social media handles began framing the attack as a justified reaction to ‘judicial arrogance’ and an ‘insult to Hindu sentiments.’

As countless social media posts lauded the attacker as a hero, the narrative was not one of law and order but of caste and religious purity. The CJI’s identity and judicial pronouncements were dissected through a casteist lens. Supporters framed the attack as a righteous blow on a system they believe is dismantling traditional hierarchies. Their bitter, caste-based assault on the CJI and the judiciary's legitimacy depicted a Manu-wadi mindset. It implies a rejection of constitutional equality in favor of a hierarchical order, where violence is a legitimate tool to “protect” a perceived status quo supposedly sanctioned by India’s Sanatani tradition.

A similar pattern emerged after the suicide of Dalit IPS officer Puran Kumar, who in his final note accused seniors in the bureaucracy of acute caste-based harassment. The officer’s death, a sad statement on the systemic discrimination faced by Dalits even in the top rungs of power, should have sparked a national conversation on institutional reform. Instead, on social media, it became an opportunity for dominant caste groups to flex their collective muscle to trigger a vulgar campaign of victim-blaming.

Social media was full of comments dismissing the officer’s merit with derogatory references to reservation policies, labeling him a “quota officer.” His suffering was trivialized, and his death was framed not as a result of caste-based harassment but as a personal failure or a sign of basic weakness. Instead of any introspection, most on social media questioned his “mental strength,” suggested “career frustration,” or mocked his invocation of an Ambedkarite identity. This vicious, casteist calumny turned Kumar’s tragedy into a digital lynching.

How Casteist Narratives Are Amplified

While some activists, journalists, and liberal thinkers raised relevant issues to explore the factors behind the Dalit officer’s suicide, most users turned social media into a platform for denying the very existence of caste oppression. Right-wing influencers and stalwarts actively tried to silence the voices of the marginalized and sought to reinforce typical stereotypes that merit is the sole preserve of the privileged castes. For every empathetic voice on social media, there were dozens echoing the coded caste contempt of India’s drawing rooms — now supercharged by reels and retweets!

Ultimately, the common thread linking the reactions to both incidents is the role of social media as a catalyst for bigotry. The vitriolic discourse shows that these are no longer passive platforms reflecting societal views; rather, they are active agents in shaping a more hate-filled public sphere. As they sharpen caste divides and celebrate regressive mindsets, social media sites now pose a grave threat to India's social fabric.

In effect, this is the new face of casteism that’s not confined to villages or bureaucracy but coded into memes, comment threads, and influencer rants. Social media’s anonymity strips away inhibitions and allows the vilest casteist slurs to be spewed without consequence. Platforms that once promised to forge connections and break hierarchies now host the loudest discourse of hatred and are creating virtual Manu Smritis for the digital age.

A Threat to India's Social Fabric and Constitutional Morality

In sum, social media storms over the attack on the CJI and the suicide of the Dalit IPS officer are not just fleeting moments of online anger. They are a growing danger wherein digital platforms are being used to wage a new kind of caste war that erodes constitutional morality and replaces it with the poison of ancient hierarchies. As social media normalizes caste hate on an unprecedented scale, it's verily turning into a tool to deepen social fissures. If this digital decay is not arrested, the India of the future may be marked not by values of equality and justice, but by a fractured society defined by the very bigotry our constitution seeks to overcome!