Delhi High Court slams the Central government for concealing facts and misleading the Court in Sameer Wankhede’s promotion case. The HC dismisses the review petition and imposes a fine of Rs 20,000, sending a strong message on transparency.
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NEW DELHI: In a strong rebuke to the Central government, the Delhi High Court on Friday imposed a cost of ₹20,000 for concealing facts in its review plea regarding the promotion of former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officer Sameer Wankhede. The case has drawn attention for the Court’s sharp criticism of government conduct.
A Division Bench comprising Justices Navin Chawla and Madhu Jain expressed strong disapproval, stating that the Central government’s behavior “strongly deprecates” the expected standard of transparency and truthfulness before the Court. Consequently, the review petition was dismissed. In a stern note, the Court remarked:
“We expect that the petitioner as a state would disclose all facts truthfully before filing the petition… For this, we dismiss the present review petition with a cost of ₹25,000. This message has to be sent.”
Background of the Case
The controversy centers on Wankhede’s promotion to the post of Joint Commissioner. Last year, the Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) kept Wankhede’s case under a sealed cover, citing pending cases against him by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), as well as ongoing departmental proceedings.
However, the Principal Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) in December 2024 ordered that the sealed cover be opened. The CAT directed that if Wankhede’s name was recommended by the Union Public Service Commission, the Central government must promote him with effect from January 2021.
The government challenged this CAT order, but the Delhi High Court upheld it on August 28, 2025.
The Review Petition
The Central government later filed a review petition, arguing that departmental proceedings against Wankhede had been initiated after the Court reserved judgment on July 29 but before it was pronounced on August 28. The government contended that the High Court’s earlier order was based on the assumption that no chargesheet existed against Wankhede, which it claimed was factually incorrect.
However, the Court found that the Central government had failed to disclose a critical fact: in August 2025, before filing the review, the CAT had stayed the chargesheet against Wankhede. This omission, the High Court noted, amounted to misleading the Court and was unacceptable.
Case Title:
Union of India & Ors v. Sameer Dnyandev Wankhede
W.P.(C) 10271/2025 & CM APPL. 42676/2025
READ JUDGMENT (28.08.20250)