New Delhi, Apr 7 The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on a plea of Gujarat High Court Advocates' Association (GHCAA) president Yatin Oza against a high court verdict convicting and sentencing him till the rising of the court for making scandalous remarks against the state judiciary.
The high court had also imposed a fine of Rs 2,000 on Oza and said in case of default, he will have to undergo simple imprisonment for two months.
Oza was elected as the GHCAA president for the 19th time on December 20, 2025.
A bench of Justices J K Maheshwari and A S Chandurkar reserved the verdict after hearing a battery of senior lawyers, including K K Venugopal, Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Singhvi and Arvind Datar, on behalf of Oza.
The Gujarat High Court was represented by senior lawyer Vijay Hansaria, who said the issue pertained to the integrity of the judiciary as an institution.
Sibal urged the bench to put a "quietus" to the case, saying Oza has tendered an unconditional apology several times for his remarks.
"I have been without my (senior) gown for two years and five months. Lordships have seen the video, there is nothing in it. He has already been punished. Your lordships have to decide whether enough is enough. He has already expressed regret...," Sibal said.
"Today, the punishment is full, he has the right to have the life of a normal lawyer for some time. You have the power to punish him. It is not that he is a fool that he will not learn a lesson. It is time for a quietus...," Singhvi said.
At present, the top court is seized of Oza's appeal against the high court's October 6, 2020, verdict by which he was convicted and sentenced to till the rising of the court.
The high court had also imposed a fine of Rs 2,000 on Oza and made it clear that in case of default, he will have to undergo simple imprisonment for two months. However, the execution of the sentence was suspended for a period of 60 days.
The top court later continued the suspension of the sentences awarded by the high court.
Later, the full court of the high court resolved to recall the restoration of Oza's "Senior Advocate" designation following a fresh incident of alleged misconduct in April 2024.
According to documents, the latest resolution follows what is being described as the "sixth incident" in a decades-long history of friction between Oza and the judiciary.
On April 9, 2024, during the hearing of a writ petition, Oza allegedly accused the presiding judge of "forum shopping".
The full court, after reviewing a video clip of the proceedings, noted that Oza appeared in the court on behalf of a respondent, without a briefing counsel or a formal power of appearance.
The full court's April 15, 2024, decision stated that Oza's behaviour was "unbecoming of a senior advocate" and that his remarks were intended to "browbeat the court".
In 2020, Oza, at a press conference, called the Gujarat High Court a "gamblers' den".
The high court previously stripped Oza of his senior designation in July 2020.
However, in October 2021, the Supreme Court exercised its powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to restore Oza's gown for a two-year probationary period starting January 1, 2022, calling it his "one more and last chance".
