*The Sad Part of Contempt Proceedings* 

In the recent issue of contempt notice issued to some government employees of WB Government regarding school teachers case, some important points emerge : 

1. These government officers are not rustic villagers who do not know the implications of contempt under CoC Act, 1971 ; so should they be treated lightly ?

2. Probably, public money will be spent on engaging expensive Advocates to defend these alleged contemnors. Can public money be allowed to be spent on defending violators of law ? Committing contempt cannot be considered as part of public duty, so where does the question of spending public money on engaging Advocates for these government officials arise ?

3. The government officers will not even get any adverse entries in their ACR and even if a suspension occurs, they will be reinstated without imposing any major penalty on them. This would probably lead to lack of respect for law. Why would these WB government officers respect decisions of Hon'ble Courts when there are no sufficient adverse consequences personally for these WB Government officers ? If an Order of Hon'ble Court is not complied within time specified in the Act or the Order of Court, contempt is complete ; but, a mere apology or "was busy" in other work [which is a clear reflection that compliance/respect for Court Orders is not a priority].