BENGALURU: A special division bench of the Karnataka High Court has ordered the registry to issue showcause notice to a New Delhi-based advocate for allegedly attempting to intimidate the court and dissuade it from proceeding on petitions relating to tobacco.
Observing that intimidation and aggressive posture towards the judges is tantamount to criminal contempt, the bench comprising Justice B S Patil and Justice B V Nagarathna directed that the notice be issued to Deepak Khosla as to why it should not initiate criminal contempt proceedings against him by
March 21.
The bench was hearing the petitions challenging the pictorial warning to the extent of 85 per cent on tobacco packs and also public interest litigation (PIL) transferred from Rajasthan High Court to the Karnataka High Court by the apex court on May 17, 2016.
Khosla, who appeared on behalf of the PIL before the division bench last week, submitted that there were talks in the corridors of the court stating that advocate K V Dhananjaya wrote to Chief Justices of High Court and Supreme Court saying that the process of hearing was not fair.
This apart, Khosla also placed the copy of a letter before the court through a memo. He also contended that the order of the apex court transferring the petitions to the Karnataka HC from Rajasthan HC is without jurisdiction. Therefore, the Karnataka HC has no jurisdiction to proceed in the matter.
Expressing displeasure, the bench observed that the intimidating and aggressive approach before the court, and also towards the petitioners’ advocates, caused annoyance to the court. He was asked to tone down. However, Khosla characterised the order passed as illegal, the bench said.