HC ticks off officials enforcing orders after contempt notice

Voicing concern over the "disturbing trend" among public servants that they would obey court orders only after contempt proceedings are initiated, Madras High Court has held that such compliance would not automatically absolve concerned officials from the contempt charges.
The observation was made by a bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Sathish K Agnihotri and Justice K K Sasidharan while closing a contempt petition against then Home Secretary Rajagopalan, Tamil Nadu Uniform Services Recruitment Board Chairman Vibhakar Sharma and DGP Ramanujam.
"Once a bureaucrat commits contempt of Court by violating Court orders and receives Contempt of Court notice, even if he complies with the order it would not automatically absolve him from contempt charges," the bench said.

It further observed that contempt petitions disclose a disturbing trend among the public servants that they will obey the court orders only after the contempt proceedings are initiated against them and a notice issued for their personal appearance.
Petitioner Uma was provisionally selected for the post of Sub-Inspector of Police but later denied appointment on the ground that the inquiries revealed that "her conduct was not satisfactory".
Upon her challenging the order in court, a single judge and then a division bench had directed the DGP to appoint her as an SI before December 31, 2012.

However, even a year after the order was passed, the government advocate on December 18,2013, informed the court, during the hearing of a contempt petition filed by her, that she will be sent to SI training after the next recruitment selection which was yet to be notified.

It was at this stage, the Judges directed the three officials to appear in the court following which the court was informed that the orders were issued on December 18,2013 itself and she had been sent for training.
The court said mere compliance of the order after the initiation of contempt proceedings would not lead to dropping of the charge. It however closed the contempt petition.