HC sentences man to jail for a month for lying on oath

Taking a serious view against a man for lying on oath, the Delhi High Court has sentenced him to jail for a month for contempt of court and said it will be a great public disaster if the fountain of justice is allowed to be poisoned by anyone giving false statements in a court of law.

Justice Manmohan said as the man had admittedly made false statements under oath, the court was of the view that it struck a blow at the rule of law and no court could ignore such a conduct, which had the tendency to shake public confidence in the judicial institutions because the very structure of an ordered life was put at stake.

Besides sentencing the man to simple imprisonment for a month, the court also imposed a fine of Rs 2,000 on him.

The court was hearing a trademark infringement suit filed by Louis Vuitton Malletier, a French fashion house and luxury retail company, seeking to restrain a Delhi-based man from selling counterfeit products bearing the company's registered trademark and logo.

While the recording of the testimony of the man, who ran a shop at Karol Bagh, he had stated that he had never sold any branded products.

During an inspection, the court-appointed local commissioners found a stock of more than 500 counterfeit products of 34 different brands at the man's shop.

The court held that as the man had perjured himself by admittedly making false statements before the court under oath, it was of the opinion that it was entitled in law to invoke its contempt jurisdiction.

"In fact, in the present case, the statements made by the man under oath, contrary to the two local commissioners' reports, prejudice and/or interfere and/or tend to interfere with the due course of the judicial proceeding and/or obstruct and/or tend to obstruct the administration of justice," it said.

"It would be a great public disaster if the fountain of justice is allowed to be poisoned by anyone giving false statements and/or fabricating false evidence in a court of law. The stream of justice has to be kept clear and pure and anyone soiling its purity must be dealt with sternly so that the message percolates loud and clear that no one can be permitted to undermine the dignity of the court and interfere with the due course of judicial proceedings or administration of justice," the court said.