Delhi HC initiates criminal contempt against lawyer for calling judiciary ‘corrupt’

In the order, the single bench of justice Amit Sharma said it was “tantamount to traditional scandalising and lowering the authority of Court. It further tends to interfere with judicial proceedings and administration of justice”.

The Delhi High Court has initiated criminal contempt of court proceedings against a lawyer for making “reckless allegations of corruption in judiciary”, saying it amounted to scandalising and lowering the court’s authority.

At the time, the lawyer had tendered an unconditional apology for his claims against judicial officers, promising not to do so again.

In the order delivered on September 19 that was released later, the single bench of justice Amit Sharma said it was “tantamount to traditional scandalising and lowering the authority of Court. It further tends to interfere with judicial proceedings and administration of justice”.

“After perusing the material placed on record in the present petition, this Court, prima facie, is of the opinion that the respondent has, thus, committed ‘criminal contempt’ as defined in Section 2(c) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971,” the judge further said.

The court was hearing a case from 2023 in which the litigant had sought the initiation of contempt proceedings against the lawyer for disobeying an earlier order from a civil court and for submissions subsequently made in connection with it.

At the time, the lawyer had tendered an unconditional apology for his claims against judicial officers, promising not to do so again. However, in January 2024, the lawyer accused judges of taking bribes worth ₹50 crore in an email sent to the litigant. The lawyer also allegedly used derogatory language against the judiciary.

The litigant brought the email to the judiciary’s notice and the lawyer was subsequently issued a show-cause notice by the high court. In his response, he called the judiciary corrupt.

“Perusal of the contents and averments made in the aforesaid reply to SCN filed by the respondent as well as email dated 21.01.2024 shows that reckless allegations of corruption in judiciary has been made by him which are contemptuous, contumacious and scandalous in nature,” the court said in its September 19 order.

It listed the matter for further hearing on November 19.