‘Re 1 fine or 3-months of imprisonment’: Supreme Court gives verdict on Prashant Bhushan’s contempt plea case

Senior lawyer Prashant Bhushan on Monday accepted the Supreme Court verdict on Monday and agreed to pay the fine of Re 1 levied on him by the top court.

The top court fined Bhushan after finding him guilty in a case of contempt for two tweets regarding Justice SS Bobde and the Supreme Court.

A three-judge bench had said that if Bhushan fails to deposit the amount by September 15, he will have to undergo simple imprisonment for three months and will be barred from practising for three years.

“My lawyer & senior colleague Rajiv Dhavan contributed 1 Re immediately after the contempt judgement today which I gratefully accepted,” Bhushan tweeted.

The Supreme Court, which had asked for an unconditional apology from the lawyer, noted, “We gave several opportunities and encouragement to (Prashant Bhushan) to express regret. He not only gave wide publicity to the second statement but also gave various interviews to press.”

The court was apparently referring to Prashant Bhushan’s statement refusing to retract his comments or apologise, saying he considered it the discharge of his “highest duty” and apologising would be contempt of his conscience and the court. Mr Bhushan also said in the statement that open criticism was necessary to “safeguard the democracy and its values.”

While some were taken aback by the SC order, others hoped that Bhushan should just pay the fine and get it over with. While many understood the symbolic value of the fine, risking three years of debarment from practice or three months in prison was seen as far more debilitating than paying the fine itself.