india

Updated: Mar 09, 2019 08:33 IST

The Delhi Police special cell has arrested four people in connection with calls made to the Karnataka high court chief justice’s office and the office of the registrar of the Andhra Pradesh high court by someone posing as the Chief Justice of India’s personal private secretary and seeking “confidential information,” according to documents accessed by HT.

One of the four, Pramod Kumar, served as private secretary to a former Union minister. Kumar’s wife confirmed that he had been picked up from their house by the police two weeks ago. The other three were identified as Mrityunjay Pandey, Jai Kumar Nayar and S Ashok.

Senior police officers declined to comment on the arrests. All four suspects are now in judicial custody.

According to the documents seen by HT, Delhi Police opposed bail for the suspects and told a city court last week that Kumar had “influential contacts”. Police did not reveal the nature of the confidential information sought by Kumar and the three others.

Kumar’s wife Rajkumari said she was surprised when the police picked up her husband from her Vikaspuri flat on February 13.

“During my very brief interactions with him after his arrest, he told me he had made a mistake and it needed to be corrected. I don’t know what he meant,” said Rajkumari.

Delhi Police had registered a first information report after receiving a complaint from an apex court official.

The official informed the police about “someone who had misused the office of the Chief Justice of India” by posing as the chief justice’s personal private secretary and calling the offices of registrar of the Andhra Pradesh high court and the chief justice of the Karnataka high court. The caller had asked for the cell number of the Andhra Pradesh high court chief justice, according to the complaint.