‘Don’t Cross the Limit’: SC asks Lawyer to Apologise, says Live-Stream Pressure no excuse for Misconduct

On Friday, the Supreme Court disposed of a plea by a Jharkhand-based lawyer facing suo motu criminal contempt proceedings, directing him to file an unconditional apology before the Jharkhand High Court and asking the High Court to consider the apology sympathetically, an order that emphasises judicial insistence on courtroom decorum amid the pressures of live-streamed hearings.

The controversy traces back to an October courtroom exchange during a live-streamed hearing before the Jharkhand High Court, where the lawyer, appearing in a matter concerning restoration of an electricity connection, allegedly told the presiding judge, “Don’t cross the limit.”

The exchange followed a dispute over the quantum of deposit required to restore supply, which was ultimately resolved, but clips of the interaction circulated widely online. Taking note of the incident, a five-judge Bench of the High Court initiated suo motu contempt proceedings, prompting the lawyer to approach the Apex Court challenging the notice.

The Division Bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi recorded the submission that the lawyer was “extremely repentant” and willing to offer an unconditional apology. While permitting him to do so before the High Court, the Bench expressed stern reservations about the conduct, with the Chief Justice remarking, “Why cannot he explain this before the judges? … Let him face them… We know how to deal with this.”

Justice Bagchi also cautioned against the growing erosion of courtroom discipline, observing that professional friction was increasingly being worn “as a matter of pride.” The Apex Court, however, confined its operative direction to granting liberty to file an affidavit of unconditional apology and requested the High Court to consider it “sympathetically.”

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