Refusing to entertain a petition alleging that its 2018 judgement was not being complied with, the Supreme Court on Monday said that the directions to the Centre and state governments to prevent mob lynchings were “general” in nature and “unmanageable”, reported Live Law.

The 2018 judgement pertains to the Supreme Court asking the Centre and state governments to lay down preventive, remedial and punitive measures to prevent instances of lynching.

The court had also asked the governments to set up special courts to conduct trials, form a compensatory scheme with provision for interim relief for victims and their relatives, and take disciplinary action beyond what is recommended in service rules for officers who do not deal with lynching incidents properly.

It had asked Parliament to consider creating a new penal provision to deal with incidents of vigilantism, saying that “mobocracy cannot be allowed in society”.

On Monday, a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was hearing a contempt petition filed by an organisation Samastha Kerala Jamiat-ul-Ulema.

“Firstly, the court should be very careful in issuing directions which are unmanageable directions,” Live Law quoted the bench as saying during the hearing. “In any case, if we issue directions, those are on general principles that we tell, we expect people to be aware of.”

It added that a contempt petition could have been moved based on specific facts if any individual’s rights were violated.

“How many contempt petitions will be there?” Deccan Herald quoted the bench as saying. “Sorry, we are not entertaining the plea.”

In 2018, the Supreme Court had asked the Union government to broadcast on radio, television and government websites that mob violence would be dealt with seriously under the law.

It had also sought a compliance report from the Union government and the states, and recommended strict action against those who spread volatile messages and videos.

The judgement had come in a batch of petitions, including one filed by Mahatma Gandhi’s great-grandson, Tarun Gandhi, and another by social activist Tehseen Poonawalla, seeking to curb violence by cow vigilante groups.

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