Kumaresan
In a civilized society, the proceedings and verdict of courts have to be respected. The court decides on disputes according the provisions of prevailing laws. The law may have scope for improvement or refinement or even need to be abolished altogether. But such exercises have to be carried out through the due process by legislative bodies duly elected through the mandate of the people. Until then the prevailing laws would endure and courts have to decide as per the provisions available. The awarded verdicts and directives of courts have to be respected by the subjects. The supremacy of the judiciary commands respect in the democratic polity of the country. If it were not so, the entire edifice of rule of law will crumble.
In recent times, the mind-set that criticises the court manifests in multitude. Many of such manifestations go unnoticed from the purview of contempt of court due to the inapplicability of the associated issues in wider space. But the deliberate repetition of criticising the judicial discharge of the presiding judges of the court is on the increase. The persons who are liable for the contempt are holding significant responsibility in public life. Such frequencies are not good symptoms of the society and they deserve condemnation in public domain.
- Raja, national secretary of the ruling BJP was subjected to action on contempt of court, while he uttered comments on the judiciary as well as unparliamentary words against the police in public domain which went viral in visual media. He sought apology in the court and came out of the clutches of law.
Again the same functionary uttered remarks belittling the manner by which the judges of the Supreme Court who delivered judgement allowing entry of menstruating women into the Kerala Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple. Does the seeking apology in earlier case of contempt empower him to commit a similar offence again? It shows his utter disrespect for judiciary, which is, after all, interpreting the Constitution.
Amit Shah, national president of the BJP questions the action on the commitment of the State government on the implementation of the verdict of the Supreme Court in the same case. His action has been challenged on the ground of contempt of court in Bihar court.
- Gurumurthi, apex functionary of a saffron wing of RSS has commented on the release of one of the human right activists branded as ‘urban naxal’ who was earlier put under house arrest as per the Maharashtra court order. A petition of contempt of court has been filed against to him.
All these excesses are only illustrative and not exhaustive. All these exceeding are oriented on the ideology that says religious customs are dominant over ‘all others’. ‘All others’ are subordinate in their minds. Such trend is not desirable for our democracy. The action on contempt of court may not be decided on the respective utterance but by reckoning the overall exceeding of the accused! The mind-set and manifestation of such offenders have to be dealt with seriously for their subjection to contempt of court and not allow them to make it a routine, which bodes ill for a democracy.
