The Delhi High Court sentenced YouTuber Gulshan Pahuja to six months' simple imprisonment for criminal contempt after he allegedly made derogatory and scandalous remarks against the judiciary in videos uploaded on his YouTube channel, Fight 4 Judicial Reforms.
The court imposed the maximum punishment of six months' imprisonment along with a Rs 2,000 fine, stating that leniency could encourage similar conduct in the future. However, the sentence has been suspended for 60 days to allow Pahuja to appeal before the Supreme Court of India.
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A Division Bench comprising Justice Navin Chawla and Justice Ravinder Dudeja observed that Pahuja showed “no remorse” and continued making controversial remarks during court proceedings, including statements comparing judicial arbitrariness to “tanashahi” (dictatorship).
According to court records, he stated that he expected no justice from the Indian judicial system, alleging, “adaalaton ki manmarzi badhti jaa rahi hai aur main koi nyay ki umeed nahi kar raha” (the arbitrary actions of the courts are increasing and I am not expecting any justice) and “manmarzi ka dusra arth tanashahi hota hai” (the synonym for arbitrariness is dictatorship).
The Bench observed that such remarks directly undermine the dignity and authority of the legal system.
While advocates Shiv Narayan Sharma and Deepak Singh, who appeared in the videos, were discharged after offering unconditional apologies, Pahuja defended his remarks as part of a campaign for judicial reforms and recording court proceedings.
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Who is Gulshan Pahuja?
He runs a YouTube channel named Fight 4 Judicial Reforms, where he posted videos targeting specific judicial officers. Through this platform, he has posted videos criticising aspects of the Indian judiciary and calling for reforms such as greater transparency and recording of court proceedings.
The Court observed that the contemnor showed no regret and did not suggest any course correction. It further noted that he compounded his contempt by making additional scandalous submissions before the Court. His repeated remarks and filings only strengthened the view that he intended to scandalise and lower the authority of the judiciary.
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