‘Scandalous’ claims against judges, officers: Delhi HC sends advocate to jail for contempt of court
Holding advocate Sanjeev Kumar, who was appearing as party-in-person, guilty of contempt, the bench of Justices Prathiba Singh and Amit Sharma recorded Wednesday that Kumar “has no respect for the courts as also the entire judicial system itself".
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Kumar is involved in multiple litigations with his wife and her family over matrimonial disputes.
(File Photo)The Delhi High Court has sentenced an advocate to four months of simple imprisonment for criminal contempt for making “scandalous and derogatory allegations” against judicial officers, judges and police officers. The court also slapped a fine of Rs 2,000 on him.
Holding advocate Sanjeev Kumar, who was appearing as party-in-person, guilty of contempt, the bench of Justices Prathiba Singh and Amit Sharma recorded Wednesday that Kumar “has no respect for the courts as also the entire judicial system itself”.
“The contemnor (Kumar) has also not shown any remorse during the course of the submissions being heard by this court. He has not expressed any apology and his entire conduct is merely an attempt to scandalize and malign the courts. Such conduct on behalf of the contemnor, especially, someone who is qualified as an advocate cannot be left unpunished… The deplorable and derogatory language used by the contemnor are clearly contemptuous against the judicial officers, judges, and court,” the bench noted.
Kumar is involved in multiple litigations with his wife and her family over matrimonial disputes.
Taking objection to the number of complaints as well as Kumar’s comments on chats made during virtual proceedings, the court went on to record that it “leaves no manner of doubt that in order to settle scores with his wife and her family, as also to unnecessarily engage them in multifarious, frivolous and baseless proceedings,” Kumar took to scandalising the courts and kept them “occupied”.
“In the course of such complaints, the judicial officers who have dealt with even small applications have not been spared and have been made the target of various complaints which have been filed… The ld. Single Judge (of Delhi HC, Justice Anoop Mendiratta) who had considered the entire matter on merits on January 25, 2024 was also not spared. The fact that hybrid hearings, which are meant to assist litigants and advocates, are in fact being misused to put such derogatory remarks in the chat box, leaves no manner of doubt in the mind of the court that the contemnor is liable to be punished for criminal contempt,” the court recorded.
“Considering the aforesaid, filing of 30 to 40 complaints against judicial officers, police officers as also the judges of this court by the contemnor clearly shows that his intention is to scandalise the court as also lower the dignity and authority of the court… The written submissions, in fact, further perpetuates contemptuous conduct of the Contemnor,” the bench ruled as it directed that his custody be taken from the court itself and be sent to jail.
The bench also refused Kumar’s request to stay the order so that he can appeal against the same before the SC. “Considering the vilification campaign of the contemnor against the courts in general and several judges in particular, and the brazen nature in which he addressed submissions even in this contempt petition, the court is not inclined to suspend the order,” the court reasoned.
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