Contempt of court act
Ajay Bansal
(Querist) 04 April 2012
This query is : Resolved
Justice Mr. Ajay Mittal of Punjab & Haryana High Court was made as Inspecting Judge for year 2011-2012 of District Court, Hisar. Consequently he came to Hisar on 29-03-2012 for conducting the inspection of work of District Court, Hisar. As per tradition and curtsy, at 9.30. a.m. on 29.03.2012, the District Bar Association had invited him for a Tea-Party, which was to be held only in his Honor at Bar-Room, Hisar at about 2.00 p.m. on that very day i.e. 29-03-2012. Said invitation of District Bar Association was accepted by Mr. Mittal with great heart. Other invitees of said Tea-Party were obviously all Members of said Bar, all Judicial Officers, all I.A.S and I.P.S officers, present at Hisar on that day. A sum of about Rs. 30000/- had been spent by the Bar on snacks, which were to be served on that Tea-Party. Beside this several others arrangements were also made for glorifying that Tea-Party. At about 12.30. p.m. on that very day i.e. 29.03.2012, a requisition of some Bar's Members was submitted at Bar's office for cancellation of aforesaid Tea-Party. Accordingly an urgent- meeting of General House of Bar was held at Bar-Room for discussing the matter. More then 500 Members of Bar were present in said urgent-meeting. All Members except one namely Pummy Sandhir, a big sycophant of Judiciary, were in favour of cancellation of said Tea-Party. Accordingly it was decided by the House that said Tea-Party would be cancelled. At about 1.55. p.m. on 29.03.2012., when Justice Mittal alongwith Hisar's judicial officers were just coming for attending the Party, Mr. Mittal was informed regarding cancellation of said Party, which was arranged for his Honor. After hearing this cancellation, Mr. Mital became abnormal and started talking in a hanky-panky way. Present Judicial Officers were saying that this cancellation of Party was a direct attack on Punjab & Haryana High Court. Several efforts were made by Judiciary and its sycophants upto 3 p.m. on that day i.e. 29.03.2012. for restoration of said Party, but to no avail. Finlay the Party in Honor of High Court Judge was cancelled and all snacks , purchased for said Party, were put in dustpins. In this way a black paint was coated on face of Punjab & Haryana High Court. The reason of this coating of black paint on face of High Court is that the Punjab & Haryana High Court is illegally protecting a corrupt[ both money-wise as well as sex-wise ],criminal,forger,wrong and shameless Judicial Officer, posted at Hisar from mid of year 2010 after obtaining reinstatement orders against six years suspension period, namely Sunita Gupta. During her present tenure of Hisar, more then 50 complains regarding corruption,crime,wrong and forgery have been made by several Lawyers and other persons. Inspite of fact that each and every complaint made against this lady is true and correct, no legal action of any type was/is being taken by High Court only due to reason that she is a regular supplier of money and sex to several Judges of Punjab & Haryana High Court.
Now High Court is thinking to prosecute 500 members of Bar Assocition, Hisar under contempt of court act. What could be the result.
DEFENSE ADVOCATE.-firmaction@g
(Expert) 04 April 2012
This can not be contempt of court however the tension between juditiary and legal fora are surfacing with regular intervals.
This arises because the advocate has to face public and is made responsible for all the ills .
There are regular problems in UP , recently a long drawn agitation at BANGALURU.
A STRONG LEGAL BODY OTHER THAN BAR COUNCIL WILL ONLY BE CAPABLE TO ADDRESS THESE PROBLEMS.
SAINATH DEVALLA
(Expert) 04 April 2012
Dear Ajay,
You cannot say its contempt of court.All these things happen due to lack of coordination between lawyers.Bar Associations have become political platforms.Rightly said by JSDN.
Shonee Kapoor
(Expert) 04 April 2012
This is not a contempt of court.
Regards,
Shonee Kapoor
harassed.by.498a@gmail.com
Guest
(Expert) 04 April 2012
I fully disagree with the contentions of the above experts. First of all, invitation without due consideration of the narrated facts of inaction by HC on some complaints was wrong.
Secondly, if invited without giving any thought and the invitation was duly accepted by the HC Judge for some event in his own honour, the cancellation of the same just a few minutes before the event, supposedly after due deliberations, due to the aforesaid reasons was just an after thought.
So, cancellation of the event was clearly an indication of showing deliberate contempt against him and inflicting willful insult on him, who represented the High Court at Hissar at that moment.
Had the Bar Association invited him to participate in the event in his honour, whatever would have been the reasons for discontent, it would have been wise on their part to hold the event and honoured the guest.
Rather, in my views, the District Bar Association lost an opportunity to vent their grievance through that event by politely putting forth their grievance and could have sought redressal therefor.
I wonder, how the collective wisdom of more than 500 members failed to realise the outcome.
So, in my opinion, that was a clearcut case of contempt.
DEFENSE ADVOCATE.-firmaction@g
(Expert) 04 April 2012
Mr P. S. Dhingra please read the contempt of court act and refer the provision to support your opinion.
Guest
(Expert) 04 April 2012
JSDN,
If you are definite on your opinion to be correct, you are welcome to quote the relevant provisions of the Contempt of Court Act under which the case cannot lie within the scope of the Act. Instead of advising me to read the whole Act, you could better have come with the exact section, under which you considered my opinion to be wrong.
Guest
(Expert) 04 April 2012
Not a convincing reply from an expert like you.
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 05 April 2012
Ajay! I am of the firm opinion that the Bar Association has not taken a mature decision. The bar was well aware about Ms. Gupta even at the time when it invited Justice Mittal to have a visit to Bar. The issue was not new. Why the office bearers of the Bar who invited Justice Mittal were unaware about the conduct of Ms. Gupta at the relevant time of invitation. This is against ethics to invite someone and all of a sudden without telling him, cancel it. This is a direct insult to Justice Mittal asnd not to Ms. Gupta. Bar might have raised this issue when he might have come to Bar Association Hall. Bar might have conveyed its anguish over the conduct of Ms. Gupta and protection of some Judges to her as told by you.
A normal human behaviour to keep the words and welcome the invited guest was not shown by an old Bar Association which one time was represented by Lala Lajpat Rai. Hissar has been the parental Bar of Bhiwani. I feel ashamed hearing such behaviour matted out to a Justice.
Anyway, this is an insult of Justice but not a contempt of Court. A disciplinary action can be recommended against the erring officials of bar Association to Bar Council of Punjab & Haryana but certainly this misconduct do not come within the definition of Contempt of Court.
For the concept of Contempt of Court, the Contempt of Court Act, 1971 was passed which dealt with such a concept. Article 129 and 215 of the Constitution of India empowers the Supreme Court and High Court respectively to punish people for their respective contempt. Section 10 of The Contempt of Courts Act of 1971 defines the power of the High Court to punish contempts of its subordinate courts. Power to punish for contempt of court under Articles 129 and 215 is not subject to Article 19(1)(a).
Essentials
The elements generally needed to establish a contempt are:
1. the making of a valid court order,
2. knowledge of the order by respondent,
3. ability of the respondent to render compliance, and
4. wilful disobedience of the order.
Types
According to Lord Hardwick, there is a three-fold classification of Contempt:
1. Scandalizing the court itself.
2. Abusing parties who are concerned in the cause, in the presence of court.
3. Prejudicing the public before the cause is heard.
However in India contempt of court is of two types:
1. Civil Contempt
Under Section 2(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act of 1971, civil contempt has been defined as wilful disobedience to any judgment, decree, direction, order, writ or other process of a court or wilful breach of an undertaking given to a court.
2. Criminal Contempt
Under Section 2(c) of the Contempt of Courts Act of 1971, criminal contempt has been defined as the publication (whether by words, spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise) of any matter or the doing of any other act whatsoever which:
(i) Scandalises or tends to scandalise, or lowers or tends to lower the authority of, any court, or
(ii) Prejudices, or interferes or tends to interfere with the due course of any judicial proceeding, or
(iii) Interferes or tends to interfere with, or obstructs or tends to obstruct, the administration of justice in any other manner.
(a) 'High Court' means the high court for a state or a union territory and includes the court of the judicial commissioner in any union territory.
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 05 April 2012
In the given situation there was not contempt of court thus the war of wrds between JSDN and Shri Dhingra ji should end now.
C. P. CHUGH
(Expert) 07 April 2012
Makkad ji has explained the provisions in detail. Thank God we do not have law of torts in india, otherwise Hon'ble Judge must have filed a defamation suit against all the 500 odd professionals.
What Hissar Bar Association did was not wrong but the way they did was certainly not professional. If they had issues with a judicial officer, it would have been better, instead of inviting the Honle Judge to honour him, they should have boycotted either by remain absent on that day or showing black ribbons. It could have effective solution to their problem but resorting to unprfoessional attitude, they have only added their problems.
