New Delhi: Taking cognisance of Narmadapuram district judge Tabassum Khan being threatened and vilified for her work, the Madhya Pradesh high court has directed the state government to protect the judicial officer and explain what steps it has taken to book the culprits.Court orders can be appealed but judges “cannot be threatened merely because he or she chooses to pass a particular order and that is not of liking of the certain section of the society [sic]”, Justices Vivek Agarwal and Avanindra Singh said.Cases like the targeting of judge Khan “directly [hamper] the judicial independence and fearless working of our judicial officers”, the bench also said in its order on Wednesday (July 1).The judges directed the state director general of police as well as the additional chief secretary/principal secretary (home) to inform the court in three days’ time what steps the government has taken to book those responsible for targeting judge Khan.They also directed that judge Khan be given protection by Narmadapuram’s police superintendent, to which the government informed the bench that the district judge has already been given protection. Deputy advocate general Abhijeet Awasthy also noted that an FIR has been lodged in the case.Judge Khan was threatened and vilified after she sentenced seven vigilantes to life imprisonment on June 12 for lynching a cattle transporter in Narmadapuram in 2022. One man posted a video threatening a ‘massacre’ if the convicts are not released, while another account reportedly called on Hindus to drive the judicial officer out of the country. Others still wrote that her judgment was owed to her religion.“If judges are made to fear personal consequences for decisions rendered in accordance with law,” the Supreme Court Advocates on Record Association had said on Wednesday, “it can have a serious negative impact on the independence and functioning of the district courts” that are the “backbone” of the Indian justice system.In a statement on Friday, the United Christian Forum also expressed its solidarity with judge Khan and condemned the campaign targeting her.“UCF stands in unwavering solidarity with Judge Tabassum Khan against this targeted hostility and has full faith in the independent judiciary of the country and hopes that she is not only provided immediate and comprehensive security by the State at the earliest but the individuals inciting this hate campaign against her are swiftly prosecuted under the law,” it said.“Ultimately, it is not merely a question of security towards a Judge but a matter of safeguarding the most important pillar of democracy,” the Forum’s national president Michael Williams added. The organisation also recalled that “international frameworks like the United Nations Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary mandate that the State must guarantee that judges can decide matters free from improper influences, inducements or threats”.