The Gujarat high court on Friday imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh each on two persons from Petlad – Vijay Shah and Alpesh Patel – for contempt of court as they tried to influence the judicial proceedings on an anticipatory bail by making a call to Justice Bela Trivedi in the name of Congress MLA Niranjan Patel in June 2020.
A bench of Chief Justice Sonia Gokani and Justice NV Anjaria refused to accept the apology tendered by Shah and Patel. As punishment, the bench asked the accused to remain seated in the courtroom till 5 pm.
While one accused was present in the HC, the other had joined the proceeding through videoconferencing from Anand. The Anand district legal service authority was ordered to ensure that the accused remained in the courtroom till the court rose in the evening. The fine to be paid by them within a week is ordered to be used for the welfare of prisoners’ families.
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