Contempt of court case: Apex court upholds conviction of Kerala CPM leader Jayarajan

Jayarajan had used unparliamentary words as he addressed a public gathering at Kannur in June 2010, venting out his anguish against a Kerala High Court order banning meetings on public roads.

The High Court held him guilty under the Contempt of Courts Act and sentenced him to simple imprisonment for six months.

Finding no ground to interfere with the conviction, the bench noted that Jayarajan had exercised his freedom of speech insofar as he dissected the judgment and argued that it was contrary to law. “He may also be excused in saying that judges live in glass houses, and that the judgment’s worth is less than grass, since this is his perception. But it is not open to the appellant or any person to employ abusive and pejorative language to the authors of a judgment and call upon them to resign and step down from their office if they have any self respect,” said the court.

It reminded Jayarajan that anyone who criticised a judgment must also keep this in mind that such was the nature of a judge’s office that he could not reply to criticism.

A speech intending to scandalise and lower the dignity of the court, and which acted as an intentional and calculated obstruction in the administration of justice, required to be “roundly repulsed and combated,” it said.

The court said: “While he has the right of freedom of speech of expression, this postulates a temperate and reasoned criticism and not a vitriolic, slanderous or abusive one; this right of free speech certainly does not extend to inciting the public directly or insidiously to disobey Court Orders. The remedy is provided by way of an appeal.”