New Delhi: Over 130 dignitaries, including former apex court judge Justice MB Lokur and renowned writer Arundhati Roy, urged Monday the Supreme Court to ‘reconsider’ and ‘withdraw’ its decision to ‘initiate suo-motu contempt proceedings’ against activist-lawyer Prashant Bhushan. The Supreme Court had July 22 issued show cause notice to Bhushan on the contempt proceedings initiated against him. The proceedings were initiated for his two allegedly ‘derogatory tweets against the judiciary’. It had also sought the assistance of Attorney General KK Venugopal in the case.
Former judges, retired senior government officials, politicians, former ambassadors and activists have issued a statement expressing solidarity with the activist-lawyer. They said that ‘initiation of contempt proceedings against Bhushan who had articulated some…concerns in his tweets, appears to be an attempt at stifling such criticism’.
“In the interest of justice and fairness and to maintain the dignity of the Supreme Court of India, we urge the Court to reconsider its decision to initiate suo-motu contempt proceedings against Prashant Bhushan and to withdraw the same at the earliest,” the statement said.
Besides Justice Lokur and Roy, the statement has been signed by the likes of former Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Ramdas, CPI general secretary, D Raja, social activist Harsh Mander and journalist P Sainath.
It said that Bhushan ‘has been a relentless crusader for the rights of the weakest sections of our society and has spent his career in pro bono legal service to those who do not have ready access to justice’.
“In the past few years, serious questions have been raised about the reluctance of the Supreme Court to play its constitutionally mandated role as a check on governmental excesses and violations of fundamental rights of people by the state. These questions have been raised by all sections of society – media, academics, civil society organisations, members of the legal fraternity and even by sitting and retired judges of the Supreme Court itself,” the statement said.
It said that most recently, the apex court’s reluctance to intervene in a timely manner to avert the migrant crisis during the lockdown came under intense public scrutiny. Concerns have also been raised regarding the decision of the court not to restart physical hearings, even in a limited manner, despite passage of five months since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it said.
The signatories urged the judges of the Supreme Court to take note of these concerns and engage with the public ‘in an open and transparent manner’.
“The initiation of contempt proceedings against Bhushan who had articulated some of these concerns in his tweets, appears to be an attempt at stifling such criticism, not just by him but by all stakeholders in the Indian democratic and constitutional setup. We believe the institution must address these genuine concerns,” the statement pointed out.