PRATAP SINGH AND ANOTHER vs GURBAKSH SINGH

The Supreme Court held that the actions of the appellants, public servants, constituted contempt of court under Section 3 of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1952, as they interfered with the respondent's legal right to seek redress in court. The court emphasized that any conduct that has a tendency to interfere with the due course of justice is contempt, regardless of whether it actually did so. The appellants were found guilty of contempt for initiating departmental proceedings against the respondent while his suit was pending, coercing him to withdraw it.