New Delhi: The Supreme Court has dropped contempt proceedings initiated by Jammu and Kashmir High Court against a former Srinagar college professor after he pledged full faith in the system and the judiciary of the country.
A bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar asked petitioner Abdul Gani Bhat, who had challenged various orders of the High Court including initiating of contempt proceedings, whether he has faith in the system and the judiciary or not.
The bench told Bhat that if he was ready to make a statement that he had faith in the system, it would drop the contempt proceedings against him. “I have full faith in the system and the judiciary of the country. For this reason, I am before the highest court of land,” Bhat responded. The bench after recording his statement dropped the contempt proceedings against him and directed the High Court to expeditiously dispose of his pending matters. Bhat, who appeared in person, was asked by the bench to appear before the High Court for hearing of his matters.
The apex court had earlier asked the High Court to place before it all pending matters of Bhat for perusal. In 2013, the High Court had imposed a fine of Rs one lakh on Bhat for filing frivolous petitions and using ‘derogatory language’ against judges who had allegedly denied him relief.
It has also initiated contempt proceedings against Bhat who retired in 2001 from Islamia College, Srinagar. “He has not shown even scant respect to the law and the Courts and has left no stone unturned to ridicule the Judges of the High Court and the lower Courts by filing complaint and petition for the reason that they passed orders against him in exercise of their legal obligation,” the High Court had said in an order passed in July, 2013 while initiating contempt proceedings against him.