Bottling the Criminal Contempt Law – A Search for ‘Intention’ in ‘Scandalizing the Court’

The right to speak and express freely is arguably the most contentious fundamental right guaranteed to the citizens by the Indian Constitution. Like all the other rights and privileges in a democracy, freedom of speech is not absolute and is subject to restrictions. One such restriction is the offence of contempt of court. In doing so, courts have been successful in upholding their dignity and majesty but often at the cost of stifling criticism and instilling fear amongst the critics of the institution. There is a sense of anxiety among the citizens as they anticipate an over-disciplined regime and struggle to understand what constitutes criminal contempt and how it works. In this article, the authors have attempted to suggest a development in the existing criminal contempt law by scrutinising the mental element of the publisher or the person making the criticism.