As Attorney General KK Venugopal has granted consent to initiate contempt of court proceedings against serial offender Kunal Kamra for his latest tweet on CJI SA Bobde, a new debate has sneaked in social media. A number of opinion makers and social media users are of the view that it would not stop ill-behaved elements like Kunal Kamra even a bit from doing what they are doing; instead it would help them gain publicity. In fact, most of the people agree to the point that Kamra is doing this for free publicity very much like what Prashant Bhushan does always.

What is the new case?

Kunal Kamra in a typical cockroach like behavior have been commenting against the top judiciary; however, every time he did such mischievous and unfunny things, the Apex court never touched upon him. However, the current comment and the picture that Kamra has shared on Twitter is not just disgusting but outright outrageous. It has angered the civil society where the Supreme Court and its justices still enjoy great respect. Responding to the complainant, Anuj Singh, an advocate at the Allahabad High Court who had sought permission, AG Venugopal said that the tweet against the CJI Bobde was “grossly obnoxious” and would “equally be an insult to the Supreme Court of India.”

AG Venugopal’s letter of consent to try Kamra for Contempt of Court reads:

“The said tweet is grossly vulgar and obnoxious and I have no doubt that it would tend to lower the authority of the Supreme Court of India as well as undermine the confidence that the litigant public has on the institution itself.”

Kunal Kamra showing middle finger to CJI Bobde

Will it help the Court or Kamra?

Article 129 of India’s Constitution says that the Supreme Court is a court of record and shall have all the powers of such a court including the power to punish for contempt of itself. One landmark case that came to the Supreme Court was S. Mulgaokar vs Unknown in 1978. In the concerned case the Indian Express newspapers on 13th December, 1977 had published some story that had scandalized the judges and in consequence to that the contempt of court case was tried against them.

Though the case was tried by the Bench of Beg, P Kailasam, and V K Iyer, a great insight came from Justice VK Iyer as he observed, “The test in each case would be whether the impugned publication is a mere defamatory attack on the judge or whether it is calculated to interfere with the due course of justice or the proper administration of law by this Court. It is only in the latter case that it will be punishable as Contempt.”

Justice Iyer had also observed in the said judgment which is quite important in Kamra’s case is the following:

“It is a disturbing development in our country that the media and some men in the trade of traducement are escalatingly scandalizing judges with flippant or motivated write-ups wearing a pro bono public veil and mood of provocative mock-challenge. The court shall not meditate nor hesitate but shall do stern justice to such ‘professional’ contemners, not shrink because they are scurrilous, influential or incorrigible.”

From the reading of the various Contempt of Court cases it appears there are higher chances that this time Kamra may have tough luck, moreover, when it has become a habit for him. Now, the question is, whether he would get what is looking for i.e. attention and publicity?

Attention Seeking Behavior among left activists

All publicity is a good publicity is what these loonies have been following. They have a win-win situation when they make news even for all bad reasons. We have seen such attention whoring quite a lot in the recent years whether it is Swara Bhashkar or Sonal Ahuja or Kunal Kamra they are all here to hog on the publicity given by the right wingers and at times by the Court. Psychologists are of the view that Attention Seeking Behavior often strikes those who have low self-esteem. Their major motivation comes from the fact that they get attention for the whacky behavior and in consequence it helps them with the feeling of reassurance that they are worthy.

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