According to sources, Vinod Rao sent the message on WhatsApp during the past 20 days
The Gujarat High Court on Thursday pulled up Vadodara Municipal Commissioner Vinod Rao for attempting to interfere in court proceedings by sending a WhatsApp message to the judge who is hearing a petition against a demolition drive by the civic body.
Single bench Justice R H Shukla, who is hearing a petition moved by 10 shop owners at Pathikbhavan in Vadodara, has asked the commissioner to submit an unconditional apology on Monday, with the text message clearly mentioned.
In January, a corporation team had arrived at Pathikbhavan to demolish the shops after issuing notices to their owners. The petitioners then approached the high court which issued a stay order on the demolition till January 10. The stay remains operative.
On Thursday, when the matter came up for hearing, the municipal commissioner, who was directed to personally appear before the court, was reprimanded for messaging the judge. According to sources, Rao sent the message on WhatsApp during the past 20 days.
“Don’t you know no one is supposed to approach the judge directly or indirectly when his/her petition is pending before the court? Being an IAS officer are you unaware about judiciary functioning? Don’t you know your jurisdiction? How dare you to send a direct WhatsApp message to the judge? Being a government officer stop behaving like a dictator. If you don’t understand your duty, court can initiate legal action against you,” Justice Shukla said.
The court further observed, “Your irresponsible behaviour and attempt to hurt the pride of the judiciary is a befitting case to initiate contempt of court proceedings against you.”
Though the commissioner immediately apologised, the court did not accept it
When DNA contacted Rao, he refused to comment stating he would like to speak on the issue only after the court proceedings on Monday.
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