New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday fined senior advocate Prashant Bhushan Rs.1 in case of criminal contempt of the ongoing trial in court over his tweets. A bench of the apex court headed by Justice Arun Mishra said Bhushan should be barred from practicing law for a period of three years and imprisonment for three months for default in paying the fine.
The bench said that the court’s decisions cannot be influenced by publications or opinions in the media. He said that there is freedom of expression but the rights of others should also be respected. In January 2018, four judges of the Supreme Court termed the press conference as incorrect and also said that “judges should not hold press conferences”.
The apex court had on August 25 reserved its decision on the quantum of Bhushan’s sentence in relation to the case. Opposing his order on the sentence, Justice Mishra had asked the senior counsel to apologize that there was nothing wrong in apologizing if there was a mistake. During the hearing, advocate for Bhushan, Dr. Rajiv Dhawan was present and said that Bhushan respects the institution.
These 2 tweets of Bhushan are considered contempt by the court
First tweet: June 27- When historians look at the past 6 years of India, we find how democracy was abolished in the country without an emergency. They (historians) will question the role of the Supreme Court, especially the 4 former CJIs. Second tweet: June 29- In this, senior counsel shared a photo of Chief Justice SA Bobde with Harley Davidson bike. In the photo, CJI was seen without a helmet and mask. Bhushan wrote that the CJI refused to give justice to the people by closing the courts in lockdown.
