Summary:
SHILLONG: The Meghalaya high court on Friday sentenced The Shillong Times editor, Patricia Mukhim , and publisher Shoba Chaudhuri to sit in the corner of the court room till the rising of the court and slapped a fine of Rs 2 lakh each in a contempt case. The order by the two judges demanding special category security was quashed by the Supreme Court. Mukhim and Chaudhuri were showcaused as to why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against the newspaper for publishing the article.In his showcause notice, Justice Sen had said the media is not to dictate what the court should do. The case relates to an article on the perks and facilities for retired judges and their families published in the paper.A division bench headed by chief justice Mohammad Yaqoob Mir warned that if the two persons failed to deposit the amount, they will have to undergo six months of simple imprisonment and the paper will be banned. "In exercise of the power vested on us by Article 215 of the Constitution of India, we sentence both the contemnors to sit in the corner of the court room till the rising of the court and impose a fine of Rs 2 lakh each which is to be deposited with the registry within a week and then to be deposited in the welfare fund of this high court," the bench said..