Mr. President, Sir, a warm controversy hangs round Contempt of Court. I submit that the High Court should have the power to punish for contempt in a summary manner. The reason is that the trial in a case must be conducted in an atmosphere of calm without any prejudice, on the evidence alone. If there is no power to proceed for Contempt of Court, any one may start a newspaper trial of a case pending in a Court or it may be that he indulges in public harangues about the merits of a case and thereby seriously prejudice the fair and impartial trial of a case. It is for this reason that contempt of Court has found a place in our statute book. There is an act of 1926 namely the Contempt of Courts Act. There are some contempts which can be punished by event he smallest magistrates. Mr. Sidhva described him as the Fourth Class Magistrate; there is no such thing at all. If there is a man who interrupts the proceedings of a Court, he should be punished summarily by any Court. There are may other serious kinds of contempt which could be punished only the High Court.
