The Supreme Court Today (Aug 8) took back its earlier harsh comments against Justice Prashant Kumar of the Allahabad High Court, saying they weren’t meant to embarrass him. The Court emphasized it only acted to protect the dignity of the judiciary.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India on Friday gave an important clarification regarding its earlier order against Justice Prashant Kumar of the Allahabad High Court.
The apex court said clearly that it never wanted to insult or cause any kind of embarrassment to Justice Kumar by giving directions to remove his criminal case responsibilities (called the “criminal roster”).
A Bench consisting of Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice R. Mahadevan said that the Supreme Court had to step in only because the matter had crossed a serious limit, and the image and respect of the entire judiciary system were at risk.
The court further explained that it always appreciates and acknowledges the good work done by High Court judges when it sees proper legal decisions being made.
“The High Courts are not separate islands that can be disassociated from this institution. Whatever we said in our order was to ensure that the dignity and authority of the judiciary is held high…. It is not just a matter of error or mistake committed by the judge concerned in appreciating the legal points or facts. We were concerned about the appropriate direction to be issued in the interest of justice and with a view to protect the honour and dignity of the institution,”
-Justice Pardiwala said during the hearing.
These comments were made while the court was recalling (or canceling) its earlier strict directions against Justice Prashant Kumar.
Earlier, on August 4, the Supreme Court had given a strong direction to the Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court. It asked him to remove Justice Kumar from handling criminal cases and to make him sit in a two-judge Bench with a more experienced senior judge.
This unusual step came after Justice Kumar made a controversial ruling, stating that criminal prosecution could be used to recover money in civil cases — something the Supreme Court strongly disagreed with.
But these strict comments by the top court created a lot of discussion and even criticism, including from within the Supreme Court itself. Many legal experts and fellow judges believed that the remarks might have been too harsh.
In fact, 13 judges of the Allahabad High Court wrote a letter to their Chief Justice Arun Bhansali. In the letter, they requested him to not follow the Supreme Court’s direction and also asked for a full court meeting to talk about the matter.
After that, and based on a request from the Chief Justice of India, the Supreme Court on Friday officially withdrew its earlier direction and removed the strong remarks it had made against Justice Kumar.
Still, while taking back its earlier decision, the Court gave a strong message that it does not want to see such unusual and wrong decisions again in future. It said such judgments affect public trust and the entire legal system.
“The endeavor of the High Court should always be to uphold the rule of law and maintain institutional credibility. If the rule of law is not maintained or protected within the court itself, then that would be the end of the entire justice delivery system in the country. Judges at any level are expected to work efficiently, discharge their duties diligently, always try and endeavor to fulfill that constitutional goal,”
-the Court said.
The Supreme Court also reminded that for most people in India, the High Court is the final court they can approach for justice.
“The litigants who come to court expect the justice delivery system to function in accordance with law and not to obtain absurd or irrational orders,”
-it said.
At the same time, the Supreme Court also clarified that it was not trying to interfere in the internal administration or decision-making powers of the Chief Justice of the High Court.
But the Court made it clear once again that it will not stay silent when the situation affects the justice system as a whole.
“When matters raise institutional concerns affecting the rule of law, this Court will be compelled to step in and take corrective status,”
-the Court said.
DETAILED HEARING OF TODAY
The Supreme Court Today (Aug 8) changed its earlier decision made on August 4, in which it had stopped Justice Prashant Kumar of the Allahabad High Court from handling criminal cases.
This step was taken after the Chief Justice of India (CJI), BR Gavai, sent a letter asking the Bench to think again about the order and the comments made against the judge.
The Bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan took the matter up again even though it was already disposed of.
After hearing again, the Court decided to cancel those parts of the August 4 order that removed Justice Kumar from criminal matters.
“Since a request has been made by the CJI we hereby delete para 25 and 26 from our 4th August order. While we delete it, we leave it the CJ of the HC to now look into the matter. We fully acknowledge that the CJ of the HC is the master of the roaster. The directions are absolutely not interfering with the administrative power of the CJ of the HC. When matters affect the rule of law, this court will be compelled to take corrective steps,”
-the Bench said.
The judges also made it clear that they never intended to insult or embarrass Justice Kumar.
“At the outset we must clarify that our intention was not to cause embarrassment or caste aspersions on the concerned judge,”
-they added.
The Bench further explained that the earlier directions were only meant to protect the honour and dignity of the entire judicial system.
“Whenever we come across legally unimpeachable order and orders that have ensured complete justice we have recorded appreciation for the judges. The HCs are not separate islands that can be disassociated from the institution. Whatever we said in our order was to ensure that the dignity of the judiciary is held high. It is not just a matter of error or mistake to appreciate the legal points we were concerned about the appropriate directions in a view to protect the honour of the institution,”
-the Court said.
This change in stand comes after the Supreme Court had earlier made strong remarks on August 4 against Justice Kumar’s understanding of criminal law.
The Court had criticised Justice Kumar for allowing criminal proceedings in a matter that was mainly civil in nature.
“We are shocked by the findings recorded in paragraph 12 of the impugned order. The judge has gone to the extent of stating that asking the complainant to pursue civil remedy would be very unreasonable as civil suits take a long time, and therefore the complainant may be permitted to institute criminal proceedings for recovery,”
-the Court had noted.
This statement was made while hearing a plea by M/S Shikhar Chemicals, who wanted the criminal case against them dropped. The case involved the supply of thread worth Rs 52,34,385, out of which Rs 47,75,000 was allegedly paid.
The remaining balance led to a complaint and criminal proceedings. Shikhar Chemicals argued in the High Court that it was just a civil money dispute, but the High Court refused to quash the case.
In the High Court’s order dated May 5, Justice Prashant Kumar had written that going through a civil case would be “very unreasonable”, and so the complainant could go for criminal prosecution instead. The Supreme Court disagreed with this logic and cancelled the High Court’s order. It also said that the matter should be looked at again by another judge.
But the Supreme Court did not stop there on August 4. It had also directed the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court to remove Justice Kumar from hearing any criminal cases. They had said:
“We further direct that the concerned judge shall not be assigned any criminal determination, till he demits office. If at all at some point of time, he is to be made to sit as a single judge, he shall not be assigned any criminal determination,”
-the Supreme Court had ordered.
This order created huge controversy. Reports said that several judges of both the Supreme Court and the Allahabad High Court were unhappy with this decision.
At least 13 judges from the Allahabad High Court reportedly wrote to their Chief Justice Arun Bhansali asking him not to follow the Supreme Court’s direction. They also wanted a full court meeting to talk about the issue.
Due to this serious response and the letter from the CJI, the case was taken up again on August 8. After reviewing everything, the Supreme Court finally took back its earlier directions and left the matter to the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court.
Case Title:
M/s. Shikhar Chemicals vs. The State of Uttar Pradesh
Diary No.:
37528/2025
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