ASHOK B. HINCHIGERI, J.

( 1 ) THIS contempt proceedings are initiated by this Court on its own motion. The petition is presented under Article 215 of the Constitution of India read with Section 15 (1) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971. The subject-matter of the complaint is that the accused have fabricated an interim order alleged to have been issued by this Court in W. A. No. 6282 of 2002 and produced the same in the proceedings before the Land tribunal, Belthangadi.

( 2 ) THE brief facts of the case are that the accused 1 had a small piece of agricultural land for which a person claiming himself to be a tenant sought for occupancy rights. The Land Tribunal granted occupancy rights. The accused filed W. P. No. 40893 of 2002 (LR) challenging the order dated 15-7-1997 passed by the Land Tribunal, Belthangadi. This writ petition was dismissed by the learned Single Judge on 13-11-2002. That order was challenged in W. A. No. 6282 of 2002. The appeals papers were returned on 22-1-2003 to the Advocate for the appellant (the accused 1 herein) for complying with the office objections. The papers were refiled on 17-2-2003.

( 3 ) MEANWHILE, the accused 1 produced a fabricated interim order dated 5-12-2002 purported to have been passed by the Division Bench of this Court in W. A. No. 6282 of 2002. This production of the order was on 4-1-2003 in the office of the Tahsildar-cum-Secretary of the Land tribunal, Belthangadi. As the Tahsildar did not find the seal of this court on the fabricated interim order and some of the writings were by hand, the Tahsildar rightly doubted its genuineness. Therefore, he contacted the Advocate General's Office both by fax and by phone. The concerned Government Advocate verified the matter and informed the tahsildar that the alleged interim order filed in his office is a forged one.

( 4 ) WHEN the above matter was brought to the notice of the Division bench, it directed the Counsel for the accused 1 to explain the forgery and to keep the accused 1 to be present on 5-3-2003. The accused 1 submitted that the copy of the alleged interim order was given to him by the accused 2. In the wake of all these developments, the accused 1 withdrew the appeal which was dismissed as withdrawn. The Division bench held that prima facie it is a case of forgery and that the concerned person should be punished after investigation and enquiry.

( 5 ) THE contempt proceedings was initiated on 29-5-2003. This Court took cognizance and issued notices to the accused. Registrar General of this Court has presented this petition on 29-5-2003. The accused 1 and 2 have filed their elaborate written statements. The sum and substance of the defence of the first accused is that it is the accused 2 who gave him the copy of the fabricated. It is his case that he acted on it bona fide and filed it with the Land Tribunal, Belthangadi. For this defence, he relies on the letter of acused 2 dated 5-2-2003. We would dissect this letter a little later in the course of the reasoning.

( 6 ) THE defence of the accused 2 is that he neither he created the alleged interim order nor he handed it over to accused 1. He states that he issued the letter dated 5-2-2003 as per the request of the accused 1 and that the said letter refers only to the copies of the appeal memo, applications and presentation form. He further objects to the accused 1 misusing his letter to fix the accused 2 and bail out himself (accused 1 ).

( 7 ) THIS Court framed the following charge on 21-7-2003:"that the first of you filed W. P, No. 40893 of 2002 (LR) challenging an order dated 15-7-1997 passed by the Land tribunal, Belthangady. The said writ petition was dismissed by this Court on 13-11-2002. As against the dismissal of the said writ petition, the first of you by engaging a Counsel filed an appeal in writ Appeal No. 6282 of 2002 (LR) on 5-12-2002. That on 17-2-2003 when the said appeal came up for consideration before the Division Bench, it was brought to the notice of the Benc

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