SC issues contempt notice to Keralam Congress office-bearers:Says judicial independence not a political convenience; case over post on CJI Surya Kant

The Supreme Court on Friday issued contempt notices to all office-bearers of the Keralam Congress over a social media post targeting CJI Surya Kant. A bench of Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi said that judicial independence was not a matter of political convenience. The Constitution is supreme, and no individual or political organisation is above it. The bench said that judgments could be criticised, but freedom of expression could not be used to create fear in the administration of justice. The court said it would appoint senior advocates Arvind Datar and Siddharth Agarwal as amici curiae in the case. The court further said, “Where the administration of justice is established, the law must take its course.” The bench also said that judicial restraint should not be mistaken for institutional weakness. Congress argues that post was made without approval During the hearing, the lawyer representing the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) said the material had been uploaded without the approval of the office-bearers. It was later removed. The lawyer told the court that an unconditional apology had also been tendered in the matter. Justice Arvind Kumar said the court would see whether the apology had come “from the pen or from the heart”. The Supreme Court said it would also examine whether criminal contempt or civil contempt applied in the matter. Senior advocates Arvind Datar and Siddharth Agarwal will be appointed amici curiae for this purpose. The court has also sought the assistance of Attorney General R. Venkataramani in the matter. Post went viral on 12 October A post against the CJI was made from the official X account of Keralam Congress on 12 October. The post drew strong criticism on social media after going viral. It was later deleted. The party subsequently said that the person responsible for the post had been removed from the post. KPCC president Sunny Joseph also said that the person concerned had been relieved of their responsibilities. Joseph had said that the post was made without the knowledge, consent or advice of the KPCC leadership. He had made it clear that the Congress had no disagreement with the impartiality of the judiciary. Complaint converted into petition on 30 October Advocate Vineet Jindal had sent the complaint to the CJI on 13 October. The complaint was registered as a writ petition on 30 October. The complaint sought directions to the authorities to determine whether a political protest and sloganeering had taken place inside the Supreme Court premises without permission on the evening of 12 October. Rahul Gandhi and other political leaders had taken part in the protest. The complaint also sought to determine whether it had obstructed the movement of lawyers, litigants, judicial officers or court staff in any way.