Lawyer Prashant Bhushan, who was found guilty of contempt by the Supreme Court, said that he will happily accept the judgement, but would file a review.
“I propose to submit myself to this order and respectful pay the fine. But I reserve the right to seek the review of the conviction and sentencing,” Bhushan said while reading from a statement at a press conference in New Delhi.
He was found guilty of the contempt by the Supreme Court for his two tweets which the court said were against the judiciary and maintained they cannot be said to be a fair criticism of the functioning of the judiciary made in public interest.
The lawyer said that he always had highest respect for the Supreme Court. “My tweets were not intended to disrespect the Supreme Court or the judiciary as a whole, but were merely meant to express my anguish, at what I felt, was a deviation from its sterling past record,” said Bhushan.
“This issue was never about me versus the Hon’ble Judges, much less about me vs the Supreme Court. When the Supreme Court wins, every Indian wins; every Indian wants a strong judiciary,” Bhushan added.
He ended the short statement with “long live democracy, Satyamev Jayate” cry.
A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra has asked Bhushan to deposit the fine by September 15, failing which he will attract a jail term of three months and debarment from law practice for three years.
Freedom of speech cannot be curtailed but rights of others need to be respected, said the bench, also comprising Justices B R Gavai and Krishna Murari.
Bhushan in his statement had refused to offer an apology to the Supreme Court for the tweets, saying what he had expressed represented his bona fide belief which he continued to hold. On August 25, senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan had urged the top court to show “judicial statesmanship” and not make Bhushan a “martyr” by punishing him for contempt over the tweets, after the activist-lawyer rejected fresh suggestions from the court for an apology.
Dhavan, representing Bhushan, had suggested that the top court recall the August 14 verdict convicting the activist lawyer and not to impose any sentence. He urged it to not only close the case but also to bring an end to the controversy.
Justice Mishra is demitting office on September 2.
