Lawyer seeks Solicitor General's nod to initiate criminal contempt proceedings against Justice Katju

After Attorney General K K Venugopal recused himself from the case, Advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava on Saturday approached Solicitor General Tushar Mehta for his consent to initiate criminal contempt proceedings against former Supreme Court judge Justice Markandey Katju for "extremely contemptuous remarks" made in the Nirav Modi extradition case.

Srivastava has written to Mehta for his nod as per Section 15 of the Contempt of Courts Act, to commence proceedings against Justice Katju for his deposition that 50% of the judiciary is corrupt in India.

He claimed that Justice Katju had deliberately and wilfully scandalised the Supreme Court and has lowered its authority, not only before a court of the United Kingdom but also before the public at large, by way of giving elaborate media briefing.

Srivastava said that Justice Katju had also stated that the “Indian judiciary has largely surrendered before the political executive”.

Read: 'Have known him for last 16 years': Attorney General recuses from dealing with request for contempt action against Justice Katju

In his letter to Mehta, the lawyer said that Justice Katju had stated that in recent years, the Supreme Court has “practically surrendered before the Indian Government and is doing its bidding and is not acting as an independent organ of the state protecting the rights of the people as it was supposed to be”.

Thus, Justice Katju has brought the administration of justice disrepute in India and abroad.

On March 30, the Attorney General recused himself by saying, “I have known Justice Katju for last about 16 years and we have been interacting with each other ever since. In this background, it is not appropriate that I deal with the matter." He, however, said the lawyer may approach Mehta for such consent.

The UK court, which allowed India's request for extradition of Modi, termed Justice Katju's deposition as "astonishing, inappropriate and grossly insensitive", besides being "less than objective and reliable."

Fugitive diamond merchant Modi is accused of duping banks of Rs 13,000 crore along with Mehul Choksi.