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SC asks Sukhbir, Majithia to apologise for their statements against ex-judge who probed sacrilege cases
The bench told SAD chief Sukhbir that he has been deputy chief minister of Punjab and expressing remorse will keep him at a higher pedestal.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leaders Sukhbir Singh Badal and Bikram Singh Majithia to express remorse over their statements against former judge Ranjit Singh, who headed a panel probing incidents of sacrilege and police firing in Punjab.
A bench of Justices MM Sundresh and Aravind Kumar, which was hearing an appeal of justice Ranjit Singh (retd) challenging the dismissal of his plea by the Punjab and Haryana high court, gave two-week time to both sides while asking the former judge to move on by keeping his ego aside.
The bench told SAD chief Sukhbir that he has been deputy chief minister of Punjab and expressing remorse will keep him at a higher pedestal.
“You were deputy CM of Punjab and he is a former judge. You both have held higher positions in public life. Just see the statements made. It does not look nice. The only way forward is that you should express remorse. Persuade him,” the bench told senior advocate Puneet Bali, appearing for both Badal and Majithia.
Bali, along with advocate Nishant Bishnoi, told the bench that they understood what was coming from the court and sought time to convey the message to his clients.
Justice Kumar, voicing a similar view, said, “Expressing remorse will keep you at a higher pedestal.” The bench also asked senior advocate Nidesh Gupta, appearing for the former judge, to convey the view of the court to him.
In his petition, justice Singh (retd) challenged the November 8, 2019, verdict of the high court dismissing his complaint under Section 10A of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952.
Justice Singh — who was entrusted to head a commission that inquired into various incidents of sacrilege in Punjab between June 2015 and March 2017 — alleged that the two SAD leaders spoke about the commission in “a very derogatory, defamatory and disrespectful manner” bringing the commission and its chairman into disrepute, which is an offence under 10A of the Act.
Under section 10-A, the offence can be punishable with a six-month imprisonment or fine or both.
A controversy had arisen at the time after justice Singh (retd) had objected to the way his case was being handled by the high court.
In his petition before the high court, he had quoted several incidents in which he found that Badal and Majithia were making “derogatory statements” against him and the commission.
Notably, the Congress government after coming to power in 2017 had set up the justice Ranjit Singh Commission to probe sacrilege and police firing incidents, including those that took place during the previous SAD-BJP regime in 2015.
