Rajya Sabha MP and senior advocate Kapil Sibal faced the anger of the the ruling BJP and the legal fraternity over his criticism of the Supreme Court.
Sibal, a former law minister, had criticised the apex court over its recent judgments, including on the PMLA, at an event on Saturday and reportedly claimed there is "no hope" left in it. How can one keep trust in the Supreme Court when it upholds such laws, he reportedly said, referring to the judgment which upheld various provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), condemned by opposition parties as draconian.
All India Bar Association (AIBA) termed the remarks of Sibal "contemptuous." AIBA chairman Adish Aggarwala said the statements by Sibal is "unfortunate" and added, "if cases haven't been decided in favour of Kapil Sibal, it does not mean that the judicial system has failed."
Meanwhile, two lawyers, on Monday, wrote separate letters to Attorney General K.K. Venugopal seeking his consent to initiate contempt proceedings against Sibal.
As per section 15 of the Contempt of Courts Act, the nod of the Attorney General or the Solicitor General is a condition precedent to set the criminal contempt proceedings in motion before the apex court.
Two lawyers—Vineet Jindal and Shashank Shekhar Jha—have requested the top law officer to grant consent for initiating contempt proceedings against Sibal, a former law minister.
"The speech of the contemnor is not only against the Supreme Court and its judges but is a process to undermine the dignity and independent nature of the Supreme Court by scandalising the authority of both the Supreme Court and its judges," Jha said in his letter.
"If this kind of precedent was allowed, political leaders would start making a reckless allegation against the judges of the highest court of our country and this trend would soon lead to the failure of an independent judiciary system," he said in his letter.
Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said the statement made by Sibal is in line with his existing mindset. "For Congress and like-minded people, courts and constitutional authorities must favour them or work as per their interest, or else they start attacking constitutional authorities themselves," news agency ANI quoted him as saying.
"It is sad that prominent leaders and parties are criticising constitutional authorities and agencies. These agencies are absolutely autonomous," he added.
—With PTI inputs
