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Head Note

The Contempt of Courts Act, 1971  - Section 2 , Section 12 , Constitution of India, 1950  - Article 19

Contempt of Court - Criminal Contempt - Conviction - Sentence - Appeal against - Right to expression - Appellant delivered a speech in a public meeting at Kannur, Kerala allegedly convened in connection with a hartal organised to protest against the hike in petroleum prices and criticized the Judgment of the High Court banning hartal - Appellant is an advocate and also an ex-member of the Legislative Assembly - He is fully aware that while he has the right of freedom of speech of expression, this postulates a temperate and reasoned criticism and not a vitriolic, slanderous or abusive one; this right of free speech certainly does not extend to inciting the public directly or insidiously to disobey Court Orders - Instead, he has vainly etymologised the Sanskrit origin of 'sumbhan', fully aware of the fact that in its slang, especially to the rural and rustic persons he was addressing, it conveyed a strong abuse - Judges expect, nay invite, an informed and genuine discussion or criticism of judgments, but to incite a relatively illiterate audience against the Judiciary, is not to be ignored - It was, not the Petitioner's province, as exercising his freedom of speech, to advise that "if those judges have any self respect, they should resign and quit their offices" - The impugned Judgment has correctly and condignly convicted the Appellant for committing contempt of Court and ordered his incarceration - While affirming the impugned Judgment, the sentence of six months imprisonment reduced to that of simple imprisonment for a period of four weeks.

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