Madras High Court quashes AG’s nod for contempt action against S Gurumurthy; says contempt power can’t be used to choke citizens' voice

The Madras High court on Thursday set aside a September 2021 consent granted by Tamil Nadu Advocate General R Shunmugasundaram to initiate contempt of court proceedings against political commentator and editor of Thuglak magazine, S Gurumurthy for his comments against the judiciary..Justice N Seshasayee set aside such consent while holding that the power of contempt should not be used by courts for “choking” citizens’ voices..The judge further said that citizens, especially those who know little of how the judiciary functions, often ends up making statements on social media criticising the judiciary. While several such statements are unwarranted, courts must not waste their time on such statements.“In a democracy driven by free speech, the Court cannot seek the comfort of the cocoon or aim to insulate itself from criticisms, just or otherwise. The contempt power is not a privilege for the court to roam free, but is a tool to trim the social psyche in meddling with the public confidence in the institution. The foundational basis for contempt jurisprudence lies in preserving the public confidence in the institution of courts, and upholding the majesty which, it must be stated, is the result of the public confidence,” the High Court said..On January 14, 2021, during the magazine’s annual meet with its readers, Gurumurthy had made a statement insinuating that judicial appointments were often made by the government to suit its own convenience. However, he had issued a clarification the very next day saying he had had no intention to insult or criticise the judiciary..Lawyer S Doraisamy had sought then AG Vijay Narayan’s consent to initiate contempt proceedings against Gurumurthy. In March 2021, Narayan refused to grant consent saying if Gurumurthy’s statements were read in context, no prima facie case for contempt was made.However, after the government changed in the State, Doraisamy approached the curreny AG urging him to recall his predecessor’s refusal of consent. In September 2021, Shunmugasundaram recalled Narayan’s order and granted consent for contempt proceedings to be in initiated against Gurumurthy..Gurumurthy then approached the High Court arguing that the AG had no power to recall his predecessor’s order refusing consent. Senior Counsel Mahesh Jethmalani and advocates Ramaswamy Meyyappan and Ravi Sharma appeared for Gurumurthy.Respondent S Doraisamy appeared in person..[Read Order]