India’s Delhi High Court has found that the Central Bureau of Investigation gave a materially false reply to a court in 2016.
It directed criminal complaint proceedings against six officers.
The reply claimed correspondence with a ministry was under way.
The court said only internal discussions were taking place.
The court said the direction is not a finding of guilt.
The court examined successive drafts of the CBI’s reply.
An earlier draft said that the Department of Personnel and Training had rejected the appeal proposal, and that text was deleted and replaced with handwritten words saying correspondence was under way.
The court said this was not mere imprecise wording, and that there was a reasonable foundation for the allegations, according to Bar and Bench.
The court said there was a reasonable foundation for offences under Sections 191, 193 and 209 of the Indian Penal Code.
Section 191 deals with giving false evidence, Section 193 with punishment for false evidence, and Section 209 with a dishonest false claim in court.
The Special Judge, CBI, has been directed to file a written complaint against the six officers with the jurisdictional Magistrate within four weeks.
The six officers include the then inspector of the case, and this report does not name them because the court has not found them guilty.
The court clarified that its direction is not a finding of guilt, and the officers can contest the complaint before the Magistrate.
The plea was filed by the former IRS officer, according to Bar and Bench and the Asian News International report.
Offences of giving false evidence in court proceedings are generally taken up through a complaint made by the court concerned.
The Delhi High Court, in an order dated October 6, 2026, directed that criminal complaint proceedings be started against six CBI officers.
Court gavel (representative image), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
