Contempt: Petitioner imposed Rs 1 lakh fine

BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday imposed a cost of Rs 1 lakh on a petitioner for making scandalous allegations against the judiciary, in relation to a civil dispute about Vyasaraja Mutt (Sosale). A division bench of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Sachin Shankar Magadum, which imposed the cost on V Gururaj, resident of Gavipuram extension in Bengaluru, said that the cost should be paid to the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority.

The bench said the Authority should, in turn, use it for the rehabilitation of children who are forced to sell toys and others items at traffic signals. “It is unfortunate that the petitioner has gone to the extent of alleging that all the judges who have practised in Karnataka will be influenced by the former CJI, who was judge of Karnataka High Court.

Most of the judges will show venerat ion towards the undisputed intellect of former CJI,” the bench noted. The petitioner had requested the Chief Justice to post the matter before the judges from other than Karnataka Bar, saying that most of these judges would be influenced by the former Chief Justice of India (CJI), who hails from Karnataka. Terming the allegations shocking, the bench said that the petitioner has sought a very peculiar writ of mandamus.

“This is a classic case of scandalising this court. There are allegations made against the former CJI by naming him repeatedly in the petition. Such allegations tend to lower the authority of the court and will constitute interference in judicial proceedings,” the bench observed. On a memo filed by the petitioner’s counsel seeking permission to retire from the case, the bench said that the allegations constitute criminal contempt under the Contempt of Courts Act. The bench said, “We expect the petitioner to go before the single judge and withdraw his submission. If it is not done so, action of initiating contempt proceedings is always open.”