In a dramatic turn inside Court Hall No. 2 at the Karnataka High Court, a habeas corpus petition filed by a 72-year-old mother, Mrs. Maheshwari, was dismissed with scathing remarks and a heavy cost of ₹2 lakh. The bench, comprising Justice Anu Sivaram and Justice Rajesh Rai K., made it clear that constitutional remedies cannot be turned into tools of harassment.
Background
The petitioner, Maheshwari, had approached the High Court claiming her son, Kriplani M., had been missing since July 7, 2025. She insisted that despite her complaints to senior police officials, no action was taken to trace him. Earlier, she had even filed a similar habeas petition but later withdrew it citing errors in statements.
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In this fresh plea, she again sought the court's intervention to locate her son. The police, however, stunned the court by producing Kriplani on August 7 after tracing him to a luxury hotel in Chennai.
Court's Observations
Once the man appeared before the bench, the story took a completely different colour. The State's counsel presented call records showing that Kriplani had been in constant touch with his mother, sister, and friends during the very period when he was supposedly missing. One of his friends had even contacted Maheshwari's lawyer, suggesting coordination behind the scenes.
Justice Rajesh Rai K., who delivered the oral judgment, observed,
"The materials clearly indicate that there was no illegal detention. Instead, the writ petition has been filed with ulterior motives and is an abuse of this Court’s process."
Adding to the twist, the police produced video footage from Chennai showing Kriplani misbehaving with officers and even assaulting one of them. An FIR was already registered against him in that city.
The bench noted that the entire exercise appeared to be a revenge tactic against Indiranagar police, who had earlier refused to act on Kriplani's complaint about a neighbour allegedly growing ganja and disturbing peace with late-night parties.
The Judges remarked that such misuse of habeas corpus - meant only to protect citizens from illegal detention - cannot be tolerated.
Decision
Concluding the matter, the division bench dismissed the petition outright. But the judges went a step further, imposing a punitive cost of ₹2 lakh on the petitioner. Half of this amount must go to the Karnataka Legal Services Authority and the other half to the Karnataka Police Benevolent Fund.
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In a stern warning, the court said,
"Litigants approaching the court with unclean hands by suppressing facts deserve exemplary costs. Such frivolous petitions waste judicial time and malign the justice system."
The court also directed that if Maheshwari failed to deposit the money within two weeks, contempt proceedings would be initiated. With that, the gavel came down, leaving a clear message: habeas corpus is a safeguard of liberty, not a weapon for personal vendetta.
Case Title: Mrs. Maheshwari M vs. State of Karnataka & Others
Case Number: WPHC No. 81 of 2025
Judgment Date: 1st September, 2025
