Delhi Court Denies CBI Custody of IPS Officer Deepak Gehlawat
A Delhi court in New Delhi on Thursday dismissed the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) plea for further police custody of IPS officer Deepak Gehlawat. Gehlawat is currently under investigation in a Rs 3-crore bribery case, which is linked to an alleged Rs 5,000-crore fake medicine manufacturing racket. Special Judge Sushant Changotra rejected the federal agency's request and instead ordered that the officer be sent to 14-day judicial custody.
In its ruling, the court observed that the CBI was "totally silent with regard to the steps taken in investigation" to ascertain the identity of the public servant whom Gehlawat was allegedly trying to influence. This silence occurred despite the court having previously granted the agency a one-day police custody period of the accused officer.
The CBI had sought the extension by alleging that Gehlawat gave evasive replies during his interrogation. Specifically, the agency pointed to transactions that included Rs 26 lakh allegedly received from co-accused Prabhat Kapoor. The CBI claimed that further custodial interrogation was necessary to confront Gehlawat with Kapoor and to identify the public servant he claimed he could influence.
However, Special Judge Changotra rejected the CBI's argument regarding the need for "unearthing the larger conspiracy." The judge observed that this specific ground had already been addressed in a prior court order dated July 1.
The judge further noted that the investigating officer was seeking police custody to find the purpose and object of transactions that pre-dated even the very first meeting between the accused individuals.
Additionally, the court pointed out that the "untitled tables" of alleged suspicious transactions presented by the agency did not contain any entry subsequent to May 14, 2026. This was the day Gehlawat allegedly first met the co-accused and demanded the bribe. The court concluded that other suspicious activities could not be part of the current case.
