The Allahabad High Court’s Lucknow Bench witnessed a tense hearing on November 20, with clear signs of the court’s growing impatience. What began months ago as a routine contempt plea has now escalated into the issuance of a bailable warrant after the respondent-District Magistrate Jasjit Kaur, who also heads the Bijnor District Caste Scrutiny Committee-failed to comply with earlier orders and allegedly stayed out of contact despite receiving notice.
Inside Court No. 8, Justice Manish Kumar made it evident that the court was no longer inclined to offer unlimited indulgence.
Background
The case stems from a contempt application filed by Vikram Singh, who alleges that the authorities did not comply with the High Court’s judgment dated 22 April 2025 in his earlier writ petition (Writ-C No. 3777 of 2025).
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Back in September, a different bench led by Justice Abdul Moin had issued the first notice, directing the respondent to explain why contempt proceedings should not be initiated. The court had emphasised strict adherence to its earlier 2021 guidelines on service of notices.
Despite this, the matter kept getting pushed. On 6 November 2025, when the case was first listed before Justice Manish Kumar, the Standing Counsel sought two more weeks to file a compliance affidavit-an extension the bench reluctantly allowed.
Court’s Observations
By the time the case returned to court on 20 November 2025, the patience of the bench had visibly worn thin. The office report revealed a troubling fact: the respondent had never contacted the Office of the Chief Standing Counsel even after service of notice for the 6 November hearing.
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Justice Kumar remarked in open court that such conduct suggested deliberate disregard. “The bench observed, ‘Once a notice is served, the least expected is communication with the government counsel. Silence only raises questions about intent.’”
The judge appeared particularly concerned that despite being a senior administrative officer and Chairperson of a statutory committee, the respondent had not taken any steps to update the court about compliance or even explain the delay.
The court noted that repeated liberty granted to the State counsel had resulted in no progress. Eventually, the tone of the proceedings shifted from accommodation to enforcement.
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Decision
With no affidavit on record and no engagement from the respondent, the High Court finally decided to take coercive action. Justice Manish Kumar ordered:
“Let a bailable warrant be issued to the respondent through the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Bijnor, to ensure her presence before this Court by the next date of listing.”
The matter has now been scheduled for the week commencing 5 January 2026, signalling that the court expects personal presence and no further delays.
The order effectively marks a shift from repeated warnings to strict judicial enforcement-bringing the contempt proceedings into their most serious phase so far.
Case Title: Vikram Singh vs. Ms. Jasjit Kaur, District Magistrate Bijnor & Chairperson, District Level Caste Scrutiny Committee
Case No.: Contempt Application (Civil) No. 2948 of 2025
Case Type: Civil Contempt (Non-compliance of High Court order dated 22.04.2025)
Decision Dates :
- 15 September 2025 (First notice issued)
- 6 November 2025 (Two weeks’ time granted for compliance affidavit)
- 20 November 2025 (Bailable warrant issued; next hearing fixed for January 2026)
