Two Karnataka High Court judges, Justices Vedavyasachar Srishananda and Krishna S Dixit, recently attended a Brahmin convention in Bengaluru, during which they extolled contributions made by the community to society, Bar and Bench reported.

“When we say ‘Brahmin’, it is a matter of pride,” Bar and Bench quoted Dixit as saying. “Why? Because they gave birth to many doctrines such as Dvaita, Advaita, Vishishta Advaita and Sudha Advaita. It is this community which gave [philosopher] Basava to the world.”

The Brahmin community had made several significant contributions to the society and had played a role in drafting the Constitution, Dixit also said.

The comments were made at an event organised by the Akhila Karnataka Brahmana Mahasabha, titled Viswamitra, in Bengaluru on January 18 and 19.

“When the Drafting Committee of the Constitution was formed, three of the seven members were Brahmins,” Dixit was quoted as saying. “This included Alladi Krishnaswamy Iyer and Gopalaswamy Iyengar. Subsequently, BN Rau, another Brahmin, was brought on board as an advisor.”

He added: “BN Rau went on to become the first Indian judge at the International Court of Justice. Even Ambedkar once said at Bhandarkar’s Institute that if BN Rau had not written the Constitution, it would have taken another 25 years to be framed.”

Dixit said the term Brahmin “should not be an indication of caste but varna”, The Indian Express reported.

Varna refers to a system of social stratification rooted in Hindu scriptures that divides society into priests, warriors and rulers, merchants and farmers, and servants, and prescribes duties for each of them. It is related to the caste system, which is a more rigid and region-specific system of stratification.

“Vedavyasa who divided the Veda [into four Vedas] was the son of a fisherwoman and Valmiki who wrote the Ramayana was from either an SC [Scheduled Caste] or an ST [Scheduled Tribe],” Dixit said. “Have we [Brahmins] looked down on them? We have worshipped Rama for centuries and the values have been incorporated into the Constitution.”

He said that all communities must co-exist and respect each other. “We should love and respect all communities and move forward together. My remarks should be seen in this context,” Dixit added.

Srishananda said that such events must be organised to “discuss their [community’s] issues”, The Indian Express reported.

“I have also come across questions as to whether such a grand assembly and conference was necessary when so many people in society are facing difficulties in getting two meals a day and studying,” Bar and Bench quoted Srishananda as saying. “The aim is to bring everyone together and present our issues. There is no other purpose.”

He added: “Why shouldn’t there be such a place and such splendour? In what are we lacking? In what are we poor? Everyone is rich in the eyes of God’s grace. If every action is done with devotion, it becomes the essence of the Bhagavad Gita, as it is pleasing to the Lord.”

Both judges have been embroiled in controversies earlier.

In 2020, Dixit made a controversial remark about a woman complainant while granting bail to a person accused of rape. His observation was subsequently expunged following criticism from lawyers and activists.

In September, the Supreme Court had taken cognisance of video clips that have emerged on social media of Srishananda making controversial comments during two separate hearings.

At one of the hearings, Srishananda was heard referring to the Muslim-dominated locality of Gori Palya in Bengaluru as “Pakistan”. He made the statement on August 28 while speaking about the need to inculcate traffic discipline in the country. He claimed that police personnel could not enforce traffic rules in the locality as they faced the threat of violence.

The Supreme Court later accepted Srishananda’s apology and closed the proceedings against him.