Supreme Court imposes ₹7,000 cost on lawyer who sought probe into protocol lapse
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday imposed ₹7,000 cost on a lawyer who filed a petition seeking a probe against the three civil servants who violated protocol during Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai's recent visit to Maharashtra, observing that the petitioner was unnecessarily bringing the office of CJI into controversy.
A bench of CJI Gavai and justice AG Masih said the petition was an effort to gain cheap publicity. 'We are of the considered view that the present PIL is a publicity interest litigation to gain cheap publicity. We highly deprecate such practice. We request everybody not to make a mountain out of a molehill,' the bench said, dismissing the petition.
During his first visit to the state as CJI for a felicitation event organised by the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa (BCMG) on May 18, the CJI disapproved of the absence of the chief secretary, the director general of police and the Mumbai Police commissioner, who were not there to receive him at the airport in violation of the laid-down protocol. CJI Gavai said he did not want to pinpoint such 'small' issues but was raising it to generate awareness.
After the CJI's remarks in Mumbai became public, all three top officials were present at the next event attended by the CJI. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court issued a statement underlining that all concerned had expressed regrets, the matter had been 'blown out of proportion' and requested that the matter be given a 'quietus'.
A petition filed by advocate Shailendra Mani Tripathi that sought a probe against the three officials under the All India Service (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969 for alleged misconduct came up before a bench led by CJI Gavai on Friday.
'You are unnecessarily bringing the office of CJI into controversy,' the bench told Tripathi as it imposed costs of ₹7,000, considering the lawyer's seven years standing at the bar.
'We have made it clear that CJI was not concerned about the treatment given to him as an individual, but he was concerned about the dignity of the office of CJI being the head of one of the wings of democracy,' the bench said.
The court stressed that the three officers tendered their apology at the first opportunity, rectified their error and subsequently accompanied CJI Gavai to the airport. 'Not only this, all the other concerned also tendered apology, even publicly,' the bench said.
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