New Delhi: In what is likely to be among the first instances of its kind, the Madhya Pradesh High Court has ordered initiation of criminal contempt proceedings against a sitting BJP MLA after a judge recorded that the legislator attempted to contact him to discuss a pending case.
The order, passed on 2nd April by a division bench led by Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, directs the registry to register a suo motu criminal contempt petition against Sanjay Satyendra Pathak, a five-time MLA from Vijayraghavgarh, and list the matter for hearing on 6th April.
The proceedings stem from a prior judicial order dated 1st September 2025, in which a single-judge bench recorded that Pathak had attempted to call the judge to “have discussion regarding this particular matter” while the case was under consideration. The judge subsequently recused himself from hearing the matter and directed that it be placed before the Chief Justice for reassignment.
Taking note of this recorded disclosure, the division bench observed that such conduct may fall within the ambit of criminal contempt under Section 2(c) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, particularly provisions relating to interference with the due course of judicial proceedings and obstruction of the administration of justice.
The court held that a prima facie case for criminal contempt was made out and ordered that proceedings be initiated against Pathak.
The underlying matter relates to a writ petition involving alleged irregularities in mining operations linked to entities associated with Pathak’s family. The petition had sought judicial intervention over claims of excess extraction and regulatory violations.
The High Court’s decision to proceed under its contempt jurisdiction, based on a judge’s own on-record disclosure of an attempt to initiate direct communication in a pending case, places the matter in a distinct legal category involving alleged interference with judicial functioning during adjudication.
The case is scheduled to be heard on 6th April.
