On Monday, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor requested an expedited hearing in the Supreme Court regarding his appeal against a Delhi High Court decision that denied his plea to dismiss defamation proceedings linked to his controversial "scorpion on Shivling" comments about Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, who extended court hours until 6 pm, was asked by Tharoor's lawyer to schedule the hearing for Tuesday. If not, Tharoor will be required to appear in a Delhi court the same day for the private defamation case

"Just circulate the email. I will look into it just now," the CJI said.

On August 29, the Delhi High Court declined to dismiss the defamation proceedings against Shashi Tharoor. The court stated that comments such as calling the prime minister a "scorpion on Shivling" are "despicable and deplorable," and noted that these remarks prima facie defamed not only the prime minister but also the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its members.

Previously, on October 16, 2020, the high court had stayed the criminal proceedings against the Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala. However, it has now lifted the stay and instructed the parties to appear before the trial court on Tuesday, September 10.

The complaint against Tharoor was filed by Delhi BJP Vice-President Rajiv Babbar. Tharoor had sought to overturn the trial court's April 27, 2019 order summoning him as an accused in the criminal defamation case, as well as the complaint filed on November 2, 2018.