Image credis - The Hans India
The Supreme Court of India has held Chief Judicial Magistrate Deepaben Sanjaykumar Thakar guilty of contempt of court for violating a Supreme Court interim anticipatory bail order. The judgment, delivered by Justices BR Gavai and Sandeep Mehta, underscores the Court’s stance against the routine granting of remands and emphasizes the role of judicial officers in safeguarding judicial orders.
The case, titled Tusharbhai Rajnikantbhai Shah vs. State of Gujarat (SLP(Crl) No. 14489/2023), centered on a contempt petition filed by Tusharbhai Rajnikantbhai Shah, who was arrested and remanded despite a Supreme Court order granting him interim anticipatory bail. The Court found both Police Inspector R.Y. Raval and Chief Judicial Magistrate Thakar in contempt for their actions.
In its judgment, the Court criticized the practice of allowing remand applications as a matter of routine. It referenced the earlier ruling in Ashok Kumar v. Union Territory of Chandigarh (2024 LiveLaw (SC) 223), which established that merely asserting the need for custodial investigation is insufficient. The State must provide substantial grounds for why custodial investigation is necessary, beyond just a prima facie case.
The Supreme Court’s ruling emphasizes that judicial officers should not act as mere “messengers” for investigating agencies and reinforces the importance of adhering to Supreme Court directives. This decision is expected to have broader implications for how remands and anticipatory bail applications are handled in the future.