Freedom of Speech and Contempt of Court in India: Understanding the Balance and Conflicts

Freedom of Speech is a Fundamental Right guaranteed by the Constitution of India while Contempt of Court is one of the several reasonable restrictions as provided by the same Constitution. Therefore, determination of the limits for exercising one's fundamental right to freedom of expression and the Court's authority to restrict such exercise of rights on the ground of defending the prestige of the Judiciary becomes necessary. For this purpose, laws regulating Contempt of Courts' provisions were enacted and implemented in India. However, in practice, several instances where abuses of both the fundamental right of speech by the individuals and the power to impose Contempt provisions by the Judiciary have been witnessed. This book is an attempt to understand the balance between Freedom of Speech and Contempt of Court in India by referring to their concepts and practical instances, where conflicts between the two took place along with the manner how they were resolved.