Contempt case: HC sends man to jail for three days

Time of India

2 days ago

Kochi: High court on Wednesday sentenced P K Suresh Kumar of Alangad, Ernakulam, to undergo simple imprisonment for three days and to pay a fine of Rs 2,000 in a criminal contempt case relating to derogatory and scandalous remarks made against HC judges through social media.
A bench of Justices V Raja Vijayaraghavan and Jobin Sebastian passed the order in a suo motu criminal contempt proceedings initiated against Kumar over a series of Facebook posts. The contemnor had previously been discharged in another suo motu contempt case after tendering an unconditional apology for similar conduct. However, shortly thereafter, he resumed posting contemptuous material from the same social media account.
HC noted that Kumar, in his posts, alleged that judges on the devaswom bench were functioning under the influence of the 'Sangh Parivar' and external agencies, rendering judgments to appease such factions. In another post he alleged that a judge had publicly endorsed the Sangh Parivar to secure personal benefits. In his counter-affidavit, Kumar admitted authorship of the impugned posts but sought to justify them as fair comment made in the exercise of his right to free speech.
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He argued that his remarks amounted to legitimate criticism of judicial orders.
Rejecting this defence, the court observed that while fair and temperate criticism of judgments is permissible, comments based on distortion and aimed at vilifying the judiciary cannot be countenanced. The bench held that the posts, taken as a whole, were intended to undermine public confidence in the independence and integrity of the judiciary.
The insinuation that judgments were rendered to secure personal advancement or at the behest of politically aligned advocates amounts to an allegation of judicial dishonesty, HC said.
After finding Kumar guilty of contempt, the court considered his plea for leniency, citing his family responsibilities. Accordingly, he was sentenced to three days' simple imprisonment and a fine of Rs 2,000, payable to the secretary, Kerala State Legal Services Authority. Following the pronouncement of the sentence, Kumar requested a day's suspension of the sentence, but the bench declined the plea.