Anurag Thakur accused of lying: What is perjury?
Anurag Thakur has been sacked from the post of BCCI president by SC. PTI Photo by Shahbaz Khan Anurag Thakur has been sacked from the post of BCCI president by SC. PTI Photo by Shahbaz Khan
The Supreme Court on Monday sacked Anurag Thakur and Ajay Shirke from the post of BCCI President and Secretary, respectively. The court also issued showcause notice to both of them asking why contempt and perjury proceedings should not be initiated against them. Proceedings for contempt of court can be carried out if any individual fails to comply with the court order. On the other hand, giving any false evidence in court amounts to perjury. The law is defined under Section 191 of Indian Penal Code.
Here is how it is defined:
Section 191 IPC: Whoever, being legally bound by an oath or by an express provision of law to state the truth, or being bound by law to make a declaration upon any subject, makes any statement which is false, and which he either knows or believes to be false or does not believe to be true, is said to give false evidence.
The punishment for such an offence is defined under Section 193 of IPC as seven years imprisonment. This is used as a deterrent against those who intentionally try to mislead the court by making false statements under oath or file ‘tainted affidavits against public good’.
Section 193 IPC: Whoever intentionally gives false evidence in any stage of a judicial proceeding, or fabri­cates false evidence for the purpose of being used in any stage of a judicial proceeding, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine, and whoever intentionally gives or fabricates false evidence in any other case, shall be punished with imprisonment of either de­scription for a term which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Also read: Here’s a timeline of the BCCI vs Lodha panel case
The perjury proceedings can be carried out against Thakur for allegedly lying under oath to obstruct reforms in the cricket body. Earlier in December 2016, the SC had stated that Thakur was prima facie culpable under charges of contempt of court and perjury as he apparently lied about seeking a letter from the International Cricket Council to assert that one of the Lodha panel recommendations on cricket reforms amounted to governmental interference.
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