HC seeks report on sentencing proceedings of former Bar Association president

New Delhi, March 3 The Delhi High Court on Thursday sought a report from the District Judge (Headquarters) on the trial court proceedings sentencing former High Court Bar Association President Rajeev Khosla in connection with a 1994 assault case on a criminal contempt plea filed by retired judge Sujata Kohli.

The bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Anoop Kumar Mendiratta was dealing with a plea alleging that Khosla has, by a series of acts and words, directly interfered with the administration of justice, interfered with the due process of law, and scandalised the court on its face.

During the course of the hearing, the bench asked how two other district judges could be present in the courtroom when a particular court was being conducted.

Further, the court observed the necessity of the records of the trial court, including the record of hybrid proceedings of the matter conducted on November 27 and 30, 2021, as well as CCTV footage of the dates, both within and outside the courtroom.

The courtroom and the legal fraternity had witnessed unprecedented events during the hearing of Khosla in an assault case on the complaint of Kohli, who was a lawyer at Tis Hazari courts in the 1990s and retired last year as a District and Sessions Judge.

On November 30, 2021, the courtroom of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Gajender Singh Nagar witnessed tumultuous scenes with the supporters of Khosla raising slogans during the course of the hearing.

The court had let off Khosla with a direction to pay a total compensation of Rs 40,000 to the victim and the state in the 28-year-old case amid lawyers' protest in the courtroom.

Prior to that, on October 29, the court had convicted Khosla in the assault case.