A division bench comprising Justice MS Ramesh and Justice Sunder Mohan found Venkatesan guilty of criminal contempt of court, sentencing him to six months imprisonment. The court observed that Venkatesan displayed no remorse and even verbally abused the two judges, calling them ‘criminals.’
Chennai: On Thursday, June 13th: The Madras High Court convicted a former locomotive pilot, PU Venkatesan, for making scandalous and reckless allegations against a Supreme Court judge and three sitting High Court judges.
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A division bench comprising Justice MS Ramesh and Justice Sunder Mohan found Venkatesan guilty of criminal contempt of court, sentencing him to six months imprisonment. The court observed that Venkatesan displayed no remorse and even verbally abused the two judges, calling them ‘criminals.‘
The Court noted that when they asked the defendant why he should not be sentenced to imprisonment, he challenged the bench to pass any order against him.
“We firmly believe that such behavior is contemptuous not only towards us but also to the entire justice delivery system. Since the contemnor has shown no remorse and instead challenged us to pass any order we chose, we find that his letters dated April 17, 2024, and April 22, 2024, scandalize, prejudice, and interfere with the course of our judicial proceedings, obstructing the administration of justice. Therefore, we hold the defendant guilty of committing criminal contempt,” the court ruled.
The court stated that Venkatesan challenged them to pass any order against him when asked why he should not be sentenced to imprisonment.
The bench emphasized that his behavior was contemptuous not only towards them but also towards the entire justice delivery system. His letters dated April 17, 2024, and April 22, 2024, were deemed to scandalize, prejudice, and interfere with judicial proceedings and obstruct the administration of justice.
Contempt proceedings began in 2020 following a Facebook post by Venkatesan containing scandalous allegations against several Supreme Court and district judges. During the hearing of this case by Justices Ramesh and Mohan, Venkatesan continued to write letters making reckless allegations against them.
On April 22, 2024, when summoned for framing charges, Venkatesan requested permission to record court proceedings on his mobile phone and made further false claims against the judges.
He attached a letter dated April 17 to his petition, addressed to Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, disparaging Supreme Court judge Justice MM Sundresh and Madras High Court judges Justice N Anand Venkatesh, Justice Ramesh, and Justice Mohan. The letter, including photos of the judges, equated them to ‘rowdies’ and ‘dogs.’
When asked by the Bench if he stood by his allegations, Venkatesan affirmed and challenged the judges to take action. This led to fresh criminal contempt proceedings.
The court noted that Venkatesan had been given a fair opportunity to present his case but continued to challenge and insult the judges in front of lawyers, litigants, and court staff. Consequently, the court found his behavior contemptuous towards the entire justice system and convicted him of criminal contempt under Section 2(c) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971.
