- (1.) The present petition has been preferred by the petitioner who is a Senior Advocate practising in this High Court praying for taking suo motu cognizance for punishing the respondents under the Contempt of Courts Act 1971 for their acts of scandalizing the Court by making reckless allegations against the Chief Justice of this Court, by imputing motives to him of having passed administrative orders for favouring Smt. Mayawati, Chief Minister of U.P. and making other pejorative allegations against the judiciary and in this manner they have lowered the authority of this Court, and also interfered with the due course of judicial proceedings.
(2.) The matter has its genesis in an article which appeared in the 4th October, 2010 issue of the weekly Magazine "Out Look" which has been published for the week of Sept 28?Oct 04, 2010. In this article the Chief Justice of this Court F.I. Rebello has been bracketed with certain High Court Judges, who have been aspersed upon to have detracted from the judicial propriety. The essential allegations which are said to be contemptuous, ascribe motives to the Chief Justice for taking away the case of sanction for prosecution from the Bench of Justice Pradeep Kant and Justice Shabihul Hasnain in the Taj Corridor matter at the fag end of the hearing of the case after his meeting with the Chief Minister Sushri Mayawati, for conferring an advantage on her. There was no specific order taking away the case, and the administrative orders bifurcating Criminal PILs from Civil PILs, and holding that PILs seeking prosecution sanctions would be cognizable by the criminal PIL Bench which resulted in the case being taken away from the Bench, was regarded as a colourable exercise of power by Chief Justice Rebello.
(3.) The petitioner has also identified certain sentences from the Article which it is stated are derogatory to the judiciary and the Chief Justice in particular which are quoted below.;