The Delhi government has consented to initiate criminal contempt proceedings against Ratna Singh, the legal affairs head of the Cockroach Janta Party, for her social media posts about a judge. The consent was granted under the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, section 15(2), and the proceedings were initiated due to Singh's comments on social media platforms questioning the judge's independence and integrity.
The Delhi government has granted consent to initiate criminal contempt proceedings against Cockroach Janta Party's legal affairs head Ratna Singh for her social media posts about a judge of the Saket District Court. This decision was made based on a complaint filed by an advocate, as reported by Live Law on Wednesday.
The contempt proceedings were initiated due to Singh's comments on social media platforms that questioned the judge's independence and integrity. In one post, she alleged that both the Delhi Police and the judge were following orders from an unidentified ‘master’. In another post, she stated that the judge had taken several breaks during the court hearing.
Following the hearing at the Saket court, where Singh sought a first information report against police personnel for allegedly wrongfully detaining her and preventing her from a protest called by the Cockroach Janta Party to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on October 10, the court rejected her petition. In response, Singh posted on social media that the judge was ‘serving the master’.
On Monday, the Delhi government’s counsel, Amol Sinha, stated in court that Singh's remarks questioned the judge's independence and could undermine public confidence in the judicial system. He pointed out a difference between criticising a court order and alleging that a judge was acting under someone else's instructions.
The consent for criminal contempt proceedings was granted under the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, section 15(2), which allows a law officer to move the High Court to initiate criminal contempt proceedings.
Source:
Scroll.in
