SUO MOTU Vs. YATIN NARENDRA OZA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A press conference inviting the media persons was convened on 05 th June, 2020, wherein the respondent made certain specific utterances and statements showing the institution of the High Court of Gujarat in very low esteem and terming it as a gambling den. The respondent who called the press conference is the President of the Gujarat High Court Advocates' Association, was a designated senior advocate of the Bar.

(2.) This Court having prima facie found that the publication of the statements and utterances in the press conference and the representation made by the respondent were scurrilous and amounted to scandalizing or tending to scandalize, and to lower the authority of the High Court was constrained to issue a suo motu notice on 09th June, 2020 taking cognizance by way of the said act, utterances, statements and representations, under the Article 215 of the Constitution and under the Contempt of Courts Act , 1971.

(3.) Noticing the events thereafter for the purpose of completion of facts, the respondent filed Special Leave Petition before the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India on 11th June, 2020, in which the aforementioned order dated 09th June, 2020 taking suo motu cognizance of the criminal contempt and issuing interim restraint directions came to be challenged. The respondent however ultimately withdrew his challenge to culminate into following order passed by the Hon'ble the Supreme Court of India.