Delhi court hands conman eight-year term for posing as Supreme Court judge

In a ruling from the Tis Hazari courts, Chief Judicial Magistrate Harshita Mishra sentenced conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar to eight years of rigorous imprisonment for masquerading as a Supreme Court judge. The judgment combined two years for IPC Section 170, two years for Section 189, and four years for Section 507, all to run consecutively, plus two fines of Rs 5,000 each. Chandrasekhar had placed multiple calls on April 28, 2017, to judicial officer Poonam Choudhary, using a regional accent to make his false identity credible and attempting to affect a bail proceeding in another case.

The court rejected his claim that the failed deception should lessen the penalty and noted his lack of remorse. Highlighting the threat of deepfakes and AI-generated voices, the magistrate stressed protecting public confidence in the justice system. Chandrasekhar will receive credit for time already spent in custody.