'Derogatory' Averments Made Against Karnataka HC In SLP : Supreme Court Issues Contempt Notice To Petitioner, AoR

The Supreme Court issued contempt notice to a litigant and his Advocate on Record for 'derogatory' averments made against the Karnataka High Court in a Special Leave Petition.

Mohan Chandra P., who is a practicing Advocate himself, had, by filing a writ petition before Karnataka High Court, challenged the selection of the Chief Information Commissioner and the Information Commissioners by the State of Karnataka. The writ petition was dismissed by the Single Bench of the High Court. While dismissing the writ appeal, the Division Bench of the High Court observed that he did not place any material before the Court to substantiate the allegations made by him. For 'wasting public and judicial time of the Court, by filing writ petition and writ appeal', costs of Rupees Five Lakhs was also imposed on him.

This SLP filed by the petitioner against this order  of the High Court came up for admission before a bench comprising of Justices BR Gavai and BV Nagarathna today (11 Nov 2022). The bench noticed that some of the averments made in the SLP memorandum are not only derogatory to the Karnataka High Court but highly contemptuous in nature. The said averments are quoted in the order passed by the bench.

The court referred to a judgment of the Constitution Bench in M.Y. Shareef and Another v. The Hon'ble Judges of the High Court of Nagpur and Ors. (1955) 1 S.C.R. 757, which held that even a lawyer who subscribes his signatures to such derogatory and contemptuous averments is guilty for committing contempt of the Court. 

The court thus issued notice to to the petitioner Mohan Chandra P. as well as the Advocate on Record to explain why an action for contempt of the Court should not be initiated against them. 

Case : Mohan Chandra P. vs State of Karnataka | SLP (Crl) 19043/2022 

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