12. Punishment for contempt of court - (1) Save as otherwise expressly provided in this Act or in any other law, a contempt of court may be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees, or with both.

Provided that the accused may be discharged or the punishment awarded may be remitted on apology being made to the satisfaction of the court.

Explanation - An apology shall not be rejected merely on the ground that it is qualified or conditional if the accused makes it bona fide.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force, no court shall impose a sentence in excess of that specified in sub section for any contempt either in respect of itself or of a court subordinate to it.

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in this section, where a person is found guilty of a civil contempt, the court, if it considers that a fine will not meet the ends of justice and that a sentence of imprisonment is necessary shall, instead of sentencing him to simple imprisonment, direct that the he be detained in a civil prison for such period not exceeding six months as it may think fit.

(4) Where the person found guilty of contempt of court in respect of any undertaking given to a court is a company, every person who, at the time the contempt was committed, was in charge of, and was responsible to, the company for the conduct of business of the company, as well as the company, shall be deemed to be guilty of the contempt and the punishment may be enforced, with the leave of the court, by the detention in civil prison of each such person.

Provided that nothing contained in this sub section shall render any such person liable to such punishment if he proves that the contempt was committed without his knowledge or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent its commission.

(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub section (4) where the contempt of court referred to therein has been committed by a company and it is provided that the contempt has been committed with the consent or connivance of, or is attributable to any neglect on the part of, any director, manger, secretary or other officer of the company, such director, manager , secretary or other officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of the be contempt and the punishment may be enforced, with the leave of the court, by the detention in civil prison of such director, manager, secretary or other officer.

Explanation - For the purpose of sub sections (4) and (5)-

(a) "Company " means any body corporate and includes a firm or other association of individuals, and

(b) "Director" in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.

COMMENTS

Breach of an injunction, or breach of an undertaking given to a court by a person in a civil proceeding amounts to contempt; Noorali Babul Thanewala v.K.M.M. Shetty, AIR 1990 Sc 564.

(i) Committing the contemner to prison is always discretionary with the Court; Shakuntala Sahadevram Tiwari v.Hemchand M.Singhania, (1990) 3 Bom CR 82 (Bom).

(ii) The power to fine and imprison for contempt is a necessary incident and attribute of a Court; Watson v.Williams, (33) 36 Mis 341.

(iii) An unreserved apology, in less serious cases, has the asset of taking the stringent of contempt; Court on behalf of the State of Punjab v.Raddha Krishan Khanna, AIR 1961 Punj 113.

(iv) The contempt power should be kept sheathed; Union of India v.S.C. Sharma, (1980) 2 SCC 144.

(v) Apology is an act of contrition. Apology must not be shorn of penitence. Tendering of apology cannot be a panacea in every case of contempt. No apology could undo gross contempt and serious cases of contempt; State of Orissa v.R.N. Patra, (1975) 41 Cut LT 329.

(vi) The court can, even when accepts the apology, commit an offender to prison or otherwise punish him; Rupert J.Bamabas v. Mrs. N.Bharani, 1990 LW (Crl) 27 (Mad).

(vii) A haulting, hesitating and vacillating apology deserves to be rejected; State of Uttar Pradesh v. Krishna Madho, AIR 1952 All 86.

(viii) The court may or may not accept an apology goes to sentence and cannot, therefore, be accepted without a finding that contempt has been committed. However, apology, though not a weapon of defence forged always to purge the guilty, should be tendered out the earliest possible stage, unreservedly and unconditionally and it must be indicative of remorse and contrition as well as free, full, frank and manly confession of a wrong done; In re: Hirenn Bose, AIR 1969 Cal 1.