Lai and nine others were charged with incitement to take part in an unauthorized assembly, for their roles in a protest on October 1, 2019, when they walked down a road with thousands of others.

Lai, 73, was sentenced to 14 months in prison. He is currently serving a separate 14-month jail term for other convictions earlier this year also related to unauthorized rallies in 2019, when Hong Kong residents took to the streets in the biggest challenge to Beijing since the city was handed from British to Chinese control in 1997.

With the two sentences combined, Lai will serve a total of 20 months behind bars.

He is also being investigated under the city’s sweeping national security law, imposed last year, for colluding with foreign powers to intervene in the Hong Kong affairs.

Authorities have arrested and charged most of the city’s pro-democracy advocates, who also include Joshua Wong, a student leader during 2014 protests.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement called on Hong Kong authorities to drop charges filed against people merely for standing for election or for expressing dissenting views.

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Prashant Bhushan, photographed holding up a Re 1 coin, announced at a press conference: “I propose to submit to the order and respectfully pay the fine.”

He said he had always believed the Supreme Court is the “last bastion of hope for the weak and oppressed” and that he never intended to hurt the judiciary, but wanted to express his anguish on a “deviation from its record”.

We hope it was the first and the last occasion that judges have gone to the press, and God gives wisdom to protect its dignity by an internal mechanism. Particularly when allegations made, if any, publicly cannot be met by sufferer judges,” the Supreme Court said.

Soon after the ruling, Mr Bhushan had tweeted: “My lawyer and senior colleague Rajiv Dhavan contributed 1 Re immediately after the contempt judgement today which I gratefully accepted.” He also said it was “heartening to see this case has become a watershed moment for freedom of speech”

The Supreme Court, which had asked for an unconditional apology from the lawyer, noted, “We gave several opportunities and encouragement to (Prashant Bhushan) to express regret. He not only gave wide publicity to the second statement but also gave various interviews to press.”

The court was apparently referring to Prashant Bhushan’s statement refusing to retract his comments or apologise, saying he considered it the discharge of his “highest duty” and apologising would be contempt of his conscience and the court. Mr Bhushan had also said that open criticism was necessary to “safeguard the democracy and its values.”

The statement “was to influence independent Judicial function,” the Supreme Court said, adding that while freedom of expression was important, rights of others should also be respected.
The court also referred to the unprecedented press conference by four Supreme Court judges on January 12, 2018, which Mr Bhushan had cited to argue that even judges had gone public with their criticism of the court.

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