In a notable judgment, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has imposed a fine of ₹10,000 on a woman who accused a judge of bias in her domestic violence case. The decision was delivered by Justice Sumeet Goel, who stated that the woman must pay the fine and provide a receipt as a prerequisite to continue her ongoing complaint in the trial court.
The woman had approached the High Court seeking to have her case reassigned from the current judge, alleging bias based on the unfavorable orders he had issued. However, Justice Goel dismissed her claims, stating that dissatisfaction with court rulings does not justify a transfer request. He described her allegations that the judge was influenced by the opposing party as baseless and termed them “grossly frivolous.”
In his ruling, Justice Goel emphasized that casting groundless aspersions on a judge is not only inappropriate but warrants a stern response. Despite the gravity of the accusations, the court considered the woman’s age and the matrimonial nature of the dispute before finalizing the amount of the fine.
