Prashant Bhushan on August 14, 2020, was held guilty of contempt by the Supreme Court for two tweets against India’s judiciary.
The two tweets were as follows:
Justices Arun Mishra, B.R. Gavai and Krishna Murari comprised the three-judge bench and in its 108-page verdict stated that “A possibility of the other judges getting an impression that they may not stand protected from malicious attacks when the Supreme Court has failed to protect itself from malicious insinuations, cannot be ruled out,”
Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave who represented Bhushan said that “To criticise a judge fairly, albeit fiercely, is not a crime, but a right,”.
The Supreme Court’s verdict has left several human right activists, opposition leaders and lawyers shocked as they deemed it to be a “dark day for the Indian democracy” and “blow to the rule of law”.
Earlier this week, Bhushan filed a petition seeking review for the August 14 SC judgement which found him guilty of contempt for his two tweets.
On August 19, Bhushan sought deferment of the hearing with respect to the contempt case, till a review petition was filed and considered by the apex court.
Ex-SC judge Justice Kurian Joseph on August 19 said, “Under Article 145(3) of the Constitution of India, there shall be a quorum of minimum five Judges for deciding any case involving substantial questions of law as to the interpretation of the Constitution. In both the suo motu contempt cases, in view of the substantial questions of law on the interpretation of the Constitution of India and having serious repercussions on the fundamental rights, the matters require to be heard by a Constitution Bench,” and called for an “intra-court” appeal.
The final hearing for the punishment was slated for August 20, 2020 and the SC refused Bhushan’s plea for deferment.
“Even if we punish you, it won’t be activated till the decision on review. We’ll be fair to you. We feel you are trying to avoid this bench,” said the Supreme Court while rejecting the plea for deferment of the hearing on the sentence by another bench.
Bhushan quoted Mahatma Gandhi and refused to apologize while “cheerfully” accepting his punishment for the contempt case.
This is a bleak future for free speech and the Supreme Court has let down India and its people.
To criminalise any form of dissent by the people especially by the apex court shows that India’s judiciary is failing itself by not upholding itself and taking away the Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression granted to the citizens by the Constitution of India.
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