A division bench comprising Justice Anil Dev Singh and Justice R.S. Sodhi in suo motu action yesterday, also called for the file relating to the case before November 24, the next date of hearing.

Coming down heavily on advocate S.K. Singh, who had thrown a pen-stand on a lady Metropolitan Magistrate in 1996 at her Tis Hazari court room here in 1997, the bench said, ``First you bring down the dignity of the court and then seek apology. There were two cases of contempt against you.''

The bench reminded Singh's counsel that the advocate seems to be a ``habitual'' contemner as he had also tried to ``misbehave'' with another lady magistrate.

The court wondered how the license of such a lawyer had not been suspended and warned that if the contempt charge against him were found to be ``true'' his license would be cancelled.

``You have tried to put yourself above the court. Did you do this because in both the cases the magistrates were women?'' the court said. Singh had allegedly hit the magistrate with a pen-stand after she turned down his plea for taking up a case of motor vehicle challan of his client on priority.