K’taka HC orders notice to man for appearing semi-naked during virtual hearing

PTI, Dec 1, 2021, 12:24 PM IST

The Karnataka High Court has ordered the issue of notice to a man who allegedly appeared ”shirtless” during the hearing of a virtual court proceeding.

The person had logged in with the name Sreedhar Bhat but it could not be ascertained whether he is an advocate or not.

During the hearing of the purported ‘sex-for-job’ scandal involving a former minister, senior counsel Indira Jaising brought the matter to the notice of the court.

”A semi-naked man was on the screen for 20 minutes. It seems he is bathing and staring at the participants. I have not come across such an embarrassing situation during the hybrid video conferencing hearings before,” Jaising told the court.

She also said she would move a contempt of court proceedings against the person for his ‘improper behavior’.

Another advocate attending the hearing on Tuesday confirmed that a person appeared before the court semi-naked.

Taking cognizance of the incident, Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi directed the issuance of notice to him based on the video footage.

Later Jaising tweeted, ”I confirm that a semi-naked man was visible on the screen for a full 20 minutes despite my objection.

I am making an official complaint about contempt of court and sexual harassment. It’s extremely disturbing in the middle of an argument in court.”