A stranger to proceedings can be held liable for contempt of court for aiding and abetting others in disobeying a court order, but only if the stranger has knowledge of the order and deliberately disobeys it in order to obstruct the course of justice.

( 1 ) MUCH of the sting has been taken away from this Contempt proceeding by the passage of time. The petitioner and his wife are the sole share-holders and Directors of Metro Engineering Works Private Limited which has its office and factory at No. 38 Kansaripara Road within the Bhowanipore Police Station. It is alleged that in June 1967, the workers of the aforesaid Company 'gheraoed' the supervising staff on several occasions and also staged a 'gherao' at the residence of the petitioner, and in spite of repeated requests, the Police authorities failed to take any action in regard thereto. On the 19th July, 1967, in an application under Article 226 of the Constitution, the petitioner obtained from this Court a Rule, viz. , C. R. 1285 (W)/67 calling upon the State of West Bengal some officials of the State, the Commissioner of Police and the Officer-in-charge Bhowanipore Police Station being respondents Nos. 1 to 6 and 17 workers being respondents Nos. 7 to 24 and the Metro Engineering Works Private Limited Workers Union, represented by Shri Asoke Kumar Bose being respondent No. 25, to show cause as to why a Writ in the nature of Mandamus should not be issued directing the respondents Nos. 1 to 6 to discharge their statutory obligations in protecting the rights of the petitioner and why a Writ in the nature of Certiorari should not be issued to quash the relevant records connected with illegal obstruction, trespass and demonstrations carried on by the members of the aforesaid Union.

( 2 ) THERE was also an interim order in the following terms:--"an interim order of injunction restraining respondents Nos. 7 to 24 from preventing the petitioner, his servants and agents 'from carrying on any trade or business, ingress to or egress from the said office premises at 38 A, Kansari-para Road, Calcutta, or obstructing movement of goods to and from the said premises or from committing assault or trespass at the said premises and restraining the said respondents from calling upon other workers and employees of your petitioner's company to join in any of the said unlawful activities. "

( 3 ) THERE was a further Interim order directing the respondents Nos. 5 and 6, the Commissioner of Police and the Officer-in-charge Bhowanipore Police Station to provide for such assistance as the petitioner might need for removal of petitioner's manufactured goods from his factory at 38 A, Kan-saripara Road, Ehowanipore, Police Station. Liberty was given to the petitioner to serve the respondents Nos. 7 to 24 at the factory site at 38a Kan-saripara Road, Calcutta-25.

( 4 ) IT is claimed in the present petition that the aforesaid interim order of injunction was duly communicated to the respondents Nos. 7 to 25 by the petitioner's Advocate on the 19th July, 1967. It is further alleged that on the 28th July, 1967, the petitioner's authorised representative accompanied by the Sub-Inspector of Police Bhowanipore Police Station went With 2 Lorries and 18 Coolies to take delivery of the petitioner's manufactured goods from the aforesaid factory where they were obstructed by the said Ashoke Kumar Bose, the President of the aforesaid Union and some of the Workers including the respondents Nos. 7 to 24 and the said Asoke Kumar Bose forced Niranjan Choudhury, the representative of the petitioner, to write a statement and to retire with the Lorries and the Coolies. It is further alleged that the said Niranjan Choudhury recorded the aforesaid facts in a letter to the Officer-in-charge of the Bhowanipore Police Station on the same date. It is further alleged that the said Asoke Kumar Bose wrote a letter to the Labour Commissioner, Government of West Bengal on the 25th July, 1967, referring therein to a press news which had appeared in "the Statesman" on the 21st July, 1967 that an injunction had been issued on the workers restraining them from trespassing, demonstrating and indulging in acts of violence or threatening the officers of the company with