Must Do Some Social Good: Calcutta High Court Orders Contemnors To Plant Trees
|The Calcutta High Court allowed a contempt application directing the contemnors to plant 10 fruit-bearing trees each. The petitioner alleged that the Contemnors willfully disobeyed the court's directions issued on September 30, 2022, and March 13, 2023. These directions prohibited the Contemnors from transferring or alienating properties used as collateral for a loan obtained.
A Bench of Justice Shekhar B. Saraf held that, “In the present case, there has been patent violation of the order passed by this court amounting to contempt of this Court. To secure the ends of justice, I am the view that the Contemnors must do some social good for this Court to countenance their act of contempt.”
Advocate Arindam Paul appeared for the Petitioners and Advocate Pratip Mukherjee appeared for the Contemnors.
The Court noted that the Contemnors have confessed to flagrantly violating the court's orders by executing conveyance deeds for the sale of the scheduled properties and they have offered an unconditional apology, citing compelling circumstances for their actions.
“The Contemnors have graciously admitted that they have committed flagrant violation of the aforesaid orders by transferring and/or selling the flats from the schedule properties as mentioned by way of executing conveyance deeds dated February 16, 2023, February 20, 2023, March 3, 2023, and March 17, 2023. The Contemnors have further submitted that there were compelling circumstances for them to undertake such execution and tendered an unconditional apology.”
The Court stated that under Article 215 of the Constitution, it being a court of record, has the authority to punish individuals for contempt. In this case, there is a clear violation of the court's order, constituting contempt.
To remedy this situation, the Court decided that the Contemnors should engage in a social good activity. Specifically, they were instructed to plant trees, as trees provide long-lasting benefits to society. The Court allowed the contempt application with the following directions:
- Contemnor No. 1 and Contemnor No. 2, to deposit Rupees 25,000 to the Gram Samriddhi Foundation's bank account within one week. These funds will be used for sustainable rural development in West Bengal.
- The Contemnors must deposit the specified amount within one week, and a compliance report should be submitted to the Court. Failure to pay will result in legal action initiated by the Registrar (Original Side).
- The Contemnors were also directed to plant 10 fruit-bearing trees each, as identified by the Gram Samriddhi Foundation, with logistical support from the foundation.
- The Contemnors must submit a compliance affidavit, along with photographs showing the plantation site(s) before and after the planting, within six weeks from the date of this order.
The case was listed for further orders on September 8, 2023.
Cause Title: M/s Hytone Merchants Pvt Ltd v. Prasenjit Das & Anr.
Click here to read/download Order