The Bombay High Court dismissed a contempt petition filed by Dhyandev Kachruji Wankhede (‘petitioner’)Â against Nawab Malik, alleging breach of an earlier undertaking given by him to refrain from making public comments about the petitioner or his family.
The Division Bench of Justice M.S. Sonak and Justice Jitendra Jain found no grounds to initiate contempt proceedings, observing that the tweet in question did not clearly amount to a breach of the undertaking recorded in an earlier affidavit filed by Malik on December 10, 2021, and noted in an order dated February 8, 2022.
The Court also observed that the alleged undertaking was meant to operate during the pendency of Suit (L) No. 25974 of 2021, which has since been dismissed for non-clearance of office objections. Since the statements in question were made after disposal of the suit, the Court declined to exercise its contempt jurisdiction.
Emphasizing that contempt is a matter between the alleged contemnor and the Court, and that the petitioner’s role is limited to placing facts before the Court, the Bench concluded that the circumstances did not justify invoking contempt powers.
The contempt petition was accordingly dismissed, with liberty granted to the petitioner to explore other legal remedies, including restoring the dismissed suit and pursuing reliefs therein
Appearances:
Petitioner: Ms Sana Raees Khan a/w Ms Neha Balani
Respondent: Mr Firoz Bharucha a/w Mr Faiyaz Khan i/b Jay & Co.