A division bench of the Rajasthan High Court has taken action against Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking suo moto criminal contempt proceedings against him. The PIL was initiated by local advocate Shivcharan Gupta following the chief minister’s statement alluding to “corruption” within the judiciary.
The division bench, led by Justice M M Shrivastava and Justice Ashutosh Kumar, deliberated on the matter on Saturday and issued a show-cause notice to Chief Minister Gehlot. The notice instructs him to provide a response within a period of three weeks.
Earlier in the week, while addressing reporters in Jaipur, Gehlot made remarks concerning the prevalence of corruption in the judiciary. He remarked, “Corruption is widespread in the judiciary today. I have heard that some lawyers themselves draft the judgments, which are then pronounced verbatim.”
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However, following significant backlash and criticism, the chief minister subsequently clarified that his statement did not reflect his personal opinion. He emphasized that he has always held great respect for and trust in the judiciary.
In protest against the chief minister’s initial comment, thousands of advocates staged a work boycott in both the high court and lower courts in Jodhpur on Friday.
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