Unbuttoned shirt in court gets UP lawyer 6 months in jail

LUCKNOW: The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court on Thursday sentenced a local lawyer, Ashok Pande, to six months' simple imprisonment in a contempt case. The bench had on August 18, 2021 initiated suo motu contempt proceedings against the lawyer who had appeared in the court without the lawyer's robe and with his shirt unbuttoned.
He had misbehaved with the judges and called them "goondas", when his appearance was objected to and he was forced to leave the court.
The bench has granted him four week to surrender before the court of Lucknow CJM to serve the sentence. The bench also asked him to deposit a fine of Rs 2000, failing which he would have to spend an extra month in jail.
A division bench comprising Justice Vivek Chaudhary and Justice BR Singh passed the verdict while deciding the criminal contempt plea.
Passing the order, the bench also issued a show-cause notice to the lawyer asking as to why he should not be restrained from doing legal practice in the Allahabad high court and its Lucknow Bench. It has granted him time till May 1 to submit his response to the show-cause notice.
The judges observed in their order, "In light of the gravity of the charges, the contemnor's previous conduct and his deliberate failure to participate in the present proceedings, we are of the view that exemplary punishment is warranted."
After drawing the contempt proceedings, Pande was given time over and again but he did not file any reply to the contempt charges.
In its verdict, the bench noticed Pande's previous conduct that several contempt proceedings were initiated against him earlier also and even in 2017, he was restrained from entering the premises of Allahabad high court and its Lucknow bench for two years.