This is the third incident during my judgeship at Allahabad that dealt indiscretion in the court on my part.
There was a capital punishment case in the bench presided over by me. The allegation was that the Deceased, a girl, had gone for nature’s call at noon time and did not come back. Her dead body along with a straight razor (उस्तरा) was found the next day around 2pm.
Two days later (three days after the incident), the accused is said to have made extra judicial confession to the Pradhan. The Informant and a prosecution witness had canvassed for the Pradhan in the election, but the Accused had canvassed for the losing candidate.
In the extra judicial confession, the Accused is said to have stated that he had seen a blue film cassette on the night and got excited next day after seeing the Deceased; he raped and then killed her.
Four days after the alleged extra judicial confession, the cassette, blood-stained pant and shirt were said to be recovered at the pointing of the Accused though no blood was found in the pant and shirt.
No one had deposed as to what was recovered: a cassette or a CD. Neither any deposed nor any one had seen that the recovered cassette/ CD was of blue film or not.
The recovered items were summoned and opened. In place of a cassette, two CDs were found. The CDs were played in the court. The Government Advocate and the Defence Counsel were requested to see. They informed the court that one had soft and the other hard pornography.
We heard the counsel for the parties and acquitted the Accused, recording how we had proceeded and whatever had happened in the court. The case is reported in Kanhaiya v. State of UP 2010 (8) Allahabad Daily Judgements 226: 2010 SCC OnLine All 3473.
We did not see the CDs but the counsel saw them. The court proceeding was not in camera, and anyone present in the court could also see them. No one suggested otherwise. But this became a talking point. I was informed that JS Verma J. also commented about the incident.
Verma J. has written the forward to my first book and knew my father very well. I was perturbed and sent a copy of the judgement for his perusal.
Later, when I was appointed the Chief Justice of the Chhattisgarh High Court, I visited him to take his blessings. He told me that: he was a judge for about 26 years; the judgement rendered by me was the finest criminal side judgement that he had ever read; and he was wrongly informed. The Supreme Court also dismissed the SLP against the judgement.
Nonetheless, the CDs were played in the open court.
I had never given second thought about the CDs being played in the court. My mother was open minded person, and we have been brought up in that ambience.
During my school years, a friend of mine, who lived with his widowed mother, acquired a blue film. Another friend had a projector. Often my friend's mother would go to Pakistan, where her daughter was married; the house would be vacant; and my friend would arrange blue film shows. However, as soon as his mother was likely to come, he would give me the blue film for safe keeping. I kept it in my clothing Almirah.
One day, while rearranging my clothes, my mother found the blue film and on enquiry, I told her everything. She asked me, if I had seen it. I hadn’t and told her so. She asked me if I knew about sex, and I said a little bit. She took me to Universal Book shop in Civil lines. At that time, it used to be one big shop. She purchased a yellow book titled ‘Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex: But Were Afraid To Ask’.
It is a good book, and this is how I got my sex education. I not only gave it to my son when he was going to IIT Kanpur to study but also to sons of my colleagues, who were going to a hostel.
Talking about sex was not a taboo in our house. On Internet, all kind of pornography is available. Perhaps, this played in my mind, and I never gave a second thought to playing CD in the open court. But it was an indiscretion on my part. I did not take into account the upbringing of others. I should have played the CDs in camera or in chambers as we did the second time, when it was shown to the accused.
These are lessons to be learnt on the field. Observe the good points of your seniors and absorb them in your behaviour. Never, give insulting punishment, discriminate or degrade the lawyers. One can be polite; yet firm on the right point of view. Exercise proper discretion, what may be done in the open court and what should be done in camera or in chambers.
#AdviceToYoungJudges #GoodJudge
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