The Hon’ble judge had issued notice to the lawyer, noting that while the judiciary is not immune from criticism, it should not be based on distorted facts or gross misrepresentation to intentionally lower its dignity and respect.
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has sentenced a lawyer, Virendra Singh, to six months in jail for contempt of court, following his baseless allegations against judges of the High Court and District Courts. The decision was made by a Division Bench comprising Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Shalinder Kaur.
The case stemmed from a criminal appeal filed by Singh, which was listed for hearing before a single judge on July 14, 2022. In this appeal, Singh made various allegations against several judges, accusing them of acting arbitrarily, whimsically, or in a biased manner. The judges were also named in the petition. When asked by the single judge whether he would like to retract these allegations, Singh refused, claiming they were not contemptuous but statements of fact.
The single judge noted that the allegations were not made by the victim appellant herself but on the advice of counsel (Virendra Singh) and subsequently issued a contempt notice to Singh. The matter was then directed to be posted before the Division Bench holding the contempt roster, subject to the orders of the Chief Justice.
Upon hearing Singh at length, the Division Bench refused to accept his argument that the allegations were mentioned to provide the “entire background so as to establish the injustice suffered by the victim leading to the acquittal of the accused persons.”
The Court observed,
“It is manifest from the above that the contemnor/respondent has made contumacious allegations in the appeal making scandalous, unwarranted, and baseless imputations against the learned Judges of this Court as well as District Courts who have been discharging their judicial function. Moreover, being an Officer of this Court making such averments in the judicial pleading are more serious in nature. It is incumbent upon the Courts of justice to check such actions with a firm hand which otherwise will have pernicious consequences.”
The Court allowed Singh to visit his home to change his clothes, drop the vehicle parked in the High Court parking, and bring his medicines so that they could be taken to jail.
The Court ordered,
“Having considered the material placed on record, submissions of contemnor, this Court is of the opinion that contemnor has no repentance for his conduct and actions. Consequently, we hereby sentence him to undergo simple imprisonment for a period of 6 months with a fine of ₹2,000/- and in default of payment of fine, he shall undergo simple imprisonment of 7 days. The contemnor is directed to be taken into custody by SI Prem (Naib Court), who along with SHO, Police Station Tilak Marg shall handover his custody to the Superintendent, Tihar Jail, Delhi.”
This ruling by the Delhi High Court serves as a stern reminder of the responsibility that legal professionals have in maintaining the dignity and respect of the judiciary, and the consequences of failing to uphold these standards.
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