Manmode moves Supreme Court in contempt case, HC order stays in force

Pramod Manmode, founder of Nagpur's Nirmal Ujjwal Credit Cooperative Society, has approached the Supreme Court directly against the criminal contempt proceedings initiated against him. He has filed a Special Leave Petition, or SLP, in the matter. The Bombay High Court's Nagpur bench has been informed of this, though the SLP has not yet been listed for hearing.

The case stems from a contempt petition filed by Pranali Ravindra Puttewar. The petition was heard on Wednesday by a bench of Justice Anil Pansare and Justice Nivedita Mehta. Senior advocate Avinash Gupta, appearing for Manmode, told the court that the High Court order on which the entire proceeding rests has already been challenged before the Supreme Court.

The High Court made its position clear in response. It said that merely filing an SLP does not stay its order. Until the Supreme Court itself grants a stay or passes any other order, the High Court's contempt order will remain fully in force.

It should also be recalled that in an earlier hearing, the High Court had already imposed a fine of five lakh rupees on Pramod Manmode. Treating the interference with judicial process seriously, the court had also directed that separate criminal contempt proceedings be initiated against Manmode. It is this action that Manmode is now challenging before the Supreme Court.

At present, the SLP filed in the Supreme Court has not yet come up for hearing, and no stay has been granted on the High Court's order. This means the fine and the directions relating to the contempt proceedings remain in force exactly as they were earlier ordered.

The next hearing in the case is scheduled for October 13. The status of the SLP pending before the Supreme Court by then will also be closely watched, as it will determine the direction of further proceedings.