The Supreme Court also said that the 11-year-old contempt case against Prashant Bhushan will continue. The court will hear the case again next Monday.
Prashant Bhushan (Photo: PTI/file)
The Supreme Court has refused to accept lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan’s explanation and regret over his comments in an interview in 2009 in which he had said: “eight of the last 16 CJIs were corrupt”. The Supreme Court also said it needed to check whether ‘corrupt Chief Justices’ remark amounts to contempt of court.
Thus, the 11-year-old contempt case against Prashant Bhushan will continue, the Supreme Court said.
A bench, comprising justices B R Gavai and Krishna Murari and headed by Justice Arun Mishra, said that it will hear the matter and deal with the issue of whether comment on corruption against judges per se amounted to contempt or not. The bench has posted the matter for hearing next Monday.
On August 4, the Supreme Court had made clear to Prashant Bhushan and Tarun Tejpal, then editor of the magazine, that it would hear the case against them if it does not accept their “explanation” or “apology” in the case.