The Delhi High Court has sentenced YouTuber Gulshan Pahuja, who runs the channel 'Fight 4 Judicial Reforms', to six months' simple imprisonment in two criminal contempt cases for making derogatory and scandalous remarks against the judiciary and judicial officers. The court additionally imposed a fine of ₹2,000 in each matter, with sentences to run concurrently.

What the Court Found

A division bench of Justice Navin Chawla and Justice Ravinder Dudeja observed that Pahuja had shown no remorse and had, in fact, compounded the contempt through further scandalous submissions made during the sentencing hearing itself. Rather than addressing the question of punishment, Pahuja used the opportunity to question the conviction — and continued making remarks against the judicial system during oral arguments.

'He, in fact, compounds his contempt by making further scandalous submissions before this Court and thus, evidently, he is neither repentant nor deserves any mercy,' the bench stated in its order.

Remarks That Sealed the Sentence

The court recorded that during oral arguments, Pahuja made remarks including 'adaalaton ki manmarzi badhti jaa rahi hai aur main koi nyay ki umeed nahi kar raha' (the wilfulness of the courts is constantly increasing and I am not hopeful of any justice) and described the functioning of courts as 'taanashahi' (dictatorship). The bench cited these remarks as evidence that leniency would only embolden similar conduct.

'We also find that by not imposing adequate punishment on him, we may encourage him to repeat these acts in future and to embolden him in doing the same. We are of the opinion that these cases call for the imposition of the maximum punishment,' the bench observed.

Amicus Curiae and Default Clause

Advocate Harsh Prabhaka, appointed as amicus curiae in the matter, submitted that Pahuja had shown 'no course correction or remorse' and had continued uploading videos targeting judicial officers despite earlier court directions restraining him from doing so. The court further directed that in case of default in payment of the fine, Pahuja would undergo an additional one month's simple imprisonment.

Sentence Suspended for Supreme Court Appeal

Taking note of Pahuja's stated intention to challenge the judgment before the Supreme Court, the bench suspended the sentence for 60 days. The court made clear that if the Supreme Court does not pass an order suspending the sentence within that period, Pahuja must surrender before the Registrar General of the Delhi High Court on his own upon expiry of the 60-day window.

The contempt proceedings stemmed from videos and online content uploaded by Pahuja on his YouTube channel, in which he made sweeping and unverified allegations against judicial officers. In its earlier judgment of 21 April 2026, the Delhi High Court had held that such remarks were intended to scandalise the institution and lower public confidence in the justice system, and were not protected under the right to free speech. The court also rejected his plea to recall the conviction judgment, noting it could not sit in review of its earlier order. All eyes now turn to the Supreme Court, where Pahuja's appeal will determine whether the sentence takes effect.