“They are not cooperating and have been absent for the inquiry,” said Ganpatrao S. Madgulkar, a police official in the city of Pune, in Maharashtra, who is looking into the case.

Indian climbers had been quick to accuse the Rathods of altering the photographs. One climber, Satyarup Siddhanta, told the police in India that the couple had used photographs he had shot of his ascent. Surendra Shelke, a complainant against the couple, told the Press Trust of India that the two had appeared in different sets of clothing in the photographs, even though climbers almost never change gear on the mountain for fear of frostbite.

The couple could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.

Elizabeth Hawley, a Kathmandu-based historian who has chronicled Everest climbs for over five decades, said she had heard of people faking ascents but could not recall the government ever penalizing anyone.

The authorities in Nepal said they were not concerned that the deception would harm the prestige of scaling Mount Everest. “I think because of this incident the reputation has gotten even better,” said Mr. Dhakal, the tourism official. “People are faking summiting Everest. That shows how eager they are to reach the top and how difficult it really is.”