A criminal contempt petition has been filed before the Delhi High Court against former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders Gopal Rai and Saurabh Bhardwaj, and journalist Saurav Das, alleging that they ran a coordinated online campaign against Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, aimed at scandalising the judiciary and interfering with ongoing proceedings in the Delhi Excise Policy case.
The Division Bench of Justice Navin Chawla and Justice Ravinder Dudeja is scheduled to hear the matter on Friday.
Advocate Ashok Chaitanya filed the petition under Section 15(1)(c) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, read with Article 215 of the Constitution, after obtaining consent from the Additional Standing Counsel (Criminal) for the Government of Delhi.
The plea contended that the alleged circulation of scandalous social media posts on platform X was intended to lower the authority of the court and obstruct the administration of justice in pending criminal proceedings arising from the Delhi Excise Policy case.
According to the petition, the alleged campaign emerged during hearings in a CBI revision petition challenging the discharge of Kejriwal and other accused persons. It was stated that multiple posts questioned the impartiality of Justice Sharma and alleged bias based on claims relating to her family members.
The petitioner contended that these allegations were factually incorrect and intended to undermine judicial independence. It was further alleged that the posts were amplified by multiple influential individuals, indicating a coordinated attempt to influence public perception of pending proceedings.
The plea specifically referred to a post attributed to Kejriwal dated April 27, 2026, in which he allegedly expressed lack of confidence in the court and announced his decision to boycott proceedings. The post was also pinned to his profile, allegedly increasing its visibility.
It was argued that such conduct by a litigant in ongoing proceedings amounted to an attempt to exert extrajudicial pressure on the court and fell within the ambit of criminal contempt under Section 2(c) of the Contempt of Courts Act, which included acts that scandalised the court or interfered with the administration of justice.
The petition further submitted that the circulation of such content allegedly led to abusive online commentary, thereby eroding public confidence in the judiciary and affecting the fairness of proceedings. It sought initiation of contempt proceedings, issuance of notices to the respondents, and punishment under the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971.
The petition noted that on May 19, the High Court had issued notice in connected suo motu contempt proceedings against several AAP leaders over similar allegations relating to social media posts targeting Justice Sharma. Those proceedings stemmed from the court’s earlier observations regarding online content perceived as undermining judicial authority in connection with the Liquor Policy case.
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