SC initiates suo motu contempt against YouTuber for 'scandalous' remarks on judge
May 30, 2025
New Delhi [India], May 30 : The Supreme Court on Friday initiated a suo motu contempt case against Chandigarh based YouTuber Ajay Shukla for defamatory remarks against a Supreme Court judge.
A vacation bench of Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, Justices AG Masih and AS Chandurkar restrained the YouTube channel from publication of the video and ordered the YouTuber to take down the offensive post and scheduled the in July.
The top court said a person cannot be permitted to make allegations in nature of defamation to a judge of this court or contemptuous in nature to bring disrepute to the judiciary.
"Such scandalous allegations widely published are likely to bring disrepute to the august institution of the judiciary. No doubt the Constitution guarantees freedom of speech. But this freedom is subject to reasonable restrictions. A person cannot be permitted to make allegations which are in the nature of defaming a judge of this court and also contemptuous in nature, which attempts to bring disrepute to the institution of the judiciary," said the bench.
It asked the Attorney General for India R Venkataramani and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to assist the court.
