2024 (8) TMI 1557

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....s taken up these proceedings suo motu in the context of an order dated 17 July 2024 passed by Justice Rajbir Sehrawat, Judge of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana, while entertaining a contempt proceeding titled Naurty Ram v Devender Singh IAS and Anr [COCP-87-2022 (O&M)]. 2 The underlying facts which gave rise to the contempt proceeding do not need to engage the attention of this Court. However, while dealing with the contempt proceedings, Justice Sehrawat has made observations in regard to the Supreme Court of India. Those observations are a matter of grave concern. Since the order forms part of the public record of the High Court, it is unnecessary for this Court to extract those observations, particularly, given the course of actio....

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....llate forum. 5 The Attorney General for India and the Solicitor General, while dilating on the background of the case which led to the passing of the order dated 17 July 2024, have submitted that the order of the Single Judge has affected the dignity not only of this Court, but of the High Court as well. 6 This Court is constrained to take suo motu notice of the contents of the order dated 17 July 2024 passed by the Single Judge in view of the fact that such observations tend to bring the entire judicial machinery into disrepute. This affects not only the dignity of this Court, but of the High Courts as well. We are accordingly of the view that such observations were wholly unnecessary for the conduct of the judicial proceedings befor....

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....ch the hierarchical nature of the judicial system imposes within the system. No Judge is personally affected by the orders passed either by the Division Bench of the High Court or, as the case may be, by the Supreme Court. 9 The order dated 17 July 2024 is compounded by a video which has been circulating indicating random, gratuitous and unwarranted remarks made by Justice Rajbir Sehrawat during the course of the hearing. In an age where there is widespread reporting of every proceeding which takes place in the Court, particularly in the context of live streaming which is intended to provide access to justice to citizens, it is all the more necessary that Judges should exercise due restraint and responsibility in the observations which a....