Satya Prakash
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, August 25
The Supreme Court today reserved its verdict on the quantum of punishment to be awarded to Prashant Bhushan for contempt of court even as senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan, representing the activist lawyer, urged it not to make him a martyr.
"My humble and most respectful submission is don't make Bhushan a martyr," Dhavan told a three-judge Bench led by Justice Arun Mishra. He said if the top court wanted to debar Bhushan from practising law, it will have to hear him first.
Dhavan's submission came after Justice Mishra asked, "If we decide to punish him, what should be the punishment?"
Attorney General KK Venugopal said, "My suggestion will be to give a quietus to this matter without getting into that exercise."
Maintaining that a warning would suffice, Venugopal said Bhushan must express regret and withdraw his affidavit justifying his controversial tweets against CJI SA Bobde and four former CJIs.
Bhushan refused to apologise, saying an insincere apology would amount to "contempt of my conscience".
Justice Mishra, who is due to retire on September 2, said it was quite painful to decide a contempt case just before demitting his office. Maintaining that criticism of judiciary was welcome, he said, "Judges are condemned, their families humiliated and they can't even speak. Who will protect them, if not the Bar?"
from The Tribune https://ift.tt/3llTClo
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