Newly appointed Meghalaya High Court Chief Justice Justice Sanjib Banerjee has said that the “VIP culture” prevalent in the country was against the interest of the people.

Coming down heavily on the country’s “VIP culture”, Justice Banerjee said, “VIP culture separates those in power from the common man, in terms of the way they conduct themselves and the extent of privileges they enjoy.”

He was speaking at an event on International Human Rights Day at the State Convention Centre in Shillong on Friday.

“It is futile to demolish mass structure only to feed the VIP culture of the upper cast of those in authority. While India boasts of many modern amenities, hunger, poverty, lack of shelter and healthcare have not been addressed adequately,” Banerjee said.

He stressed the need to protect diversity within the homogeneous identity of India.

Lamenting about the caste system and suppression of women which are realities to this day, he said, “These are an inheritance of a post-colonial feudal culture which we cannot be proud of.”