TMI Blog1994 (11) TMI 425X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... que motive, the same interferes with the administration of justice. Such persons are required to be properly dealt with, not only to punish them for the wrong done, but also to deter others from indulging in similar acts which shake the faith of people in the system of administration of justice. 3.These prefatory remarks well project the importance of the point under consideration in this suo motu contempt action taken against respondent Anil Kumar for his having filed a fabricated document to oppose the prayer of his wife seeking transfer of a matrimonial proceeding from Delhi to Unnao. It shall be first required to be seen whether Anil did file a fabricated document and then we shall address ourselves as to whether filing of a forged d ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e prayer of his wife to get the matrimonial proceeding transferred on the ground of her poverty i.e. it was done with an oblique motive. 5.The real question is whether filing of the aforesaid forged and fabricated document amounts to contempt. According to Shri Gangull, appearing for Anil Kumar, this does not. Let it be seen whether the contention advanced by Shri Ganguli is tenable. 6.In Section 2(a) of the Act contempt of court has been said to mean civil contempt or criminal contempt. The latter expression has been defined in Section 2(c) to mean the publication of a matter which, inter alia, interferes or tends to interfere with due course of any judicial proceeding, or interferes or tends to interfere with, or obstructs or tend ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ognised courts of the land are so flouted that their authority wanes and is supplanted. 8. To enable the courts to ward off unjustified interference in their working, those who indulge in immoral acts like perjury, prevarication and motivated falsehoods have to be appropriately dealt with, without which it would not be possible for any court to administer justice in the true sense and to the satisfaction of those who approach it in the hope that truth would ultimately prevail. People would have faith in courts when they would find that (truth alone triumphs) is an achievable aim there; or (it is virtue which ends in victory) is not only inscribed in emblem but really happens in the portals of courts. 9. The aforesaid thoughts receive ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed. This is what finds place at pages 399 to 401 (2nd Edn.); page 62 (1993 Reprint); and pages 186 and 188 (1982 Edn.) respectively of the aforesaid treatises. 11. These statements are based on some important decided cases. It would be enough for our purpose to note two such decisions, one of which is by the Privy Council and the other by a King's Bench Division. 12. In the Privy Council case titled Moses Amado Taylor, Re3 which was on appeal from the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone, what had happened was that the appellant, a barrister, who had enrolled as solicitor of the Supreme Court of the said Colony, applied to the Acting Chief Justice for a warrant for the arrest of one Wright on the ground that he was about to leave the set ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 13. The King's Bench judgment was rendered in R. v. Weisz 1912 AC 347: 81 LJPC 169 : 105 LT 973 : 28 TLR 204,, ex p Hector MacDonald Ltd.(1951) 2 KB 611 :(1951) 2 All ER 408 Lord Goddard, C.J. (speaking for the Court) held the action of the type, which was one of recovery of money on the basis of PC account stated though there was none, as an abuse of the process of the court but not per se a contempt. It was however added that if the attempt were to deceive by disguising the true nature of the claim, the same would be contempt. On the facts of the case it was found that the solicitor firm had committed contempt as it had endorsed the writ (which was for money won at betting) for a fictitious, though apparently a legal cause of actio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ife afresh . Thus, the apology tendered is not a product of remorse or contrition, which it has to be to merit acceptance, as stated in M.B. Sanghi v. High Court of Punjab Haryana (1991) 3 SCC 600: 1991 SCC (Cri) 897 in which case it was also pointed out that an apology merely to protect against rigours of law is no apology. In Major General B.M. Bhattacharjee v. Russel Estate Corpn (1993) 2 SCC 533 an unconditional apology while trying to justify the act (similar is the position here as would appear from the averments made in paragraph 5 of the aforesaid affidavit) was not accepted. Recently, in K.A. Mohammed Ali v. C.N. Prasannan 1994 Supp (3) SCC 509 : JT (1994) 6 SC 584, a belated apology sought was refused. 16.Had the contemner ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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