Saying that there was “no law prohibiting consumption of chicken over the Ganga river”, Justice Ujjal Bhuyan of the Supreme Court on Saturday criticised the arrest of youngsters for consuming chicken biryani while breaking their fast. “I am sure consuming chicken biryani is not an offence. It can’t be an offence…they were arrested for that very reason and they had to remain in jail for three months,” he said.Speaking at the 4th Memorial Lecture of Justice G P Singh at the National Law Institute University (NLIU), Bhopal, Justice Bhuyan said peaceful protest is central to a democracy but ordinary acts of dissent are increasingly being treated as criminal conduct. “The right to express one’s views and to demonstrate peacefully are fundamental freedoms of the citizens. Debate and dissent are the essence of democracy. Unfortunately, even normal activities are being criminalised,” he said.Referring to environmental protests and student demonstrations, he said, “People who come to voice their anguish over environmental degradation, which is a reality, are chased away as if they are criminals. Students protesting in campuses are arrested and they do not get bail for 30-40 days.” He added that students are often suspended as well, forcing them to approach courts before they can resume their education.Justice Bhuyan questioned whether courts, through restrictive bail conditions, were also discouraging dissent. “These issues raise serious questions… though the courts are responsive and do grant bail, many a time it is belated. But it is the restrictive conditions which are imposed while granting bail that are causing the greatest concern. By such restrictive orders, are the courts indirectly telling the citizens or discouraging the citizens not to express their dissent?” he said.Referring to the Supreme Court’s 2024 judgment against punitive “bulldozer justice”, Justice Bhuyan said the ruling was welcome but had come “two years too late”. He also referred to cases where accused persons granted bail were restrained from attending public meetings or posting on social media, saying such conditions “severely undermine their fundamental freedoms and liberty”.He also criticised the Bombay High Court’s refusal to permit a demonstration in solidarity with Palestine, saying he found the court’s observations “very amusing.” He recalled that the petitioners had been asked why they wanted to protest over events in Gaza instead of issues within India, adding that India has traditionally recognised Palestine and hosts a Palestinian Embassy.He also said that the issue with former judges moving into political roles after retirement, saying “when a former Chief Justice of India says, ‘I am going to the Rajya Sabha to bridge the gap between judiciary and the Executive’, it is fundamentally wrong… There is a fundamental fallacy in it.”Story continues below this adCalling on law students to question institutions, including the judiciary, Justice Bhuyan said judicial decisions must remain open to scrutiny, saying that “judgments, after being delivered, are required to be critically examined and criticised if necessary. Criticism of a judgment does not amount to criticism of a judge”.He also noted that the judiciary’s legitimacy ultimately rests on public confidence rather than self-assessment, adding that “new generation of lawyers and law students are far more committed to the rule of law and to the Constitution than my generation was. I see great hope in them.”