Contempt of Court: SC fines Prashant Bhushan with one rupee
By Newsmeter Network Published on 31 Aug 2020 8:52 AM GMT
New Delhi: In a hearing on Monday, August 31, the Supreme Court fined advocate Prashant Bhushan with a sum of one rupee, as punishment for his contempt of court.
The bench sentenced him for contempt of court through two tweets he had posted on his official social media handles, and directed him to pay the sum before September 15 to the Court Registry.
My lawyer and senior colleague Rajiv Dhavan contributed 1 Re immediately after the contempt judgement today which I gratefully accepted, Prashant Bhushan said.
The court further said that in case he fails to deposit the sum, he will have to undergo three-month imprisonment and will be debarred from practise for three years.
While the final sentence was supposed to be given by the bench on August 26, the judgment was reserved after Prashant Bhushan refused to apologize to the court for his tweets.
On the same day, he wrote to the SC bench that apologizing would be a "contempt of his conscience."
On August 14, a 3-judge bench of the Supreme Court had and held Bhushan guilty of contempt of court for his tweets against the SC and the Chief Justices of India.
During a hearing held on August 20, the advocate justified his statements and affirmed his reactions. The bench, then, asked him to apologize in order for a lighter sentence, and the hearing was postponed to August 26.
On July 22, the court had taken suo-moto cognizance and issued a contempt of court notice to Prashant Bhushan regarding his tweets on the Supreme Court judiciary.
