In a landmark judgment delivered on August 19, 2025, the Special Judge under the SC/ST Act in Lucknow sentenced advocate Parmanand Gupta to multiple terms of imprisonment for his role in orchestrating false and malicious legal cases against his property and business rivals by exploiting a vulnerable Scheduled Caste woman, Pooja Rawat.
In an order of over 90 pages, the court laid out a saga of legal manipulation, criminal conspiracy, and systemic misuse of laws designed to protect marginalised communities in India.
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The case originated from accusations that advocate Gupta, along with his wife Sangita Gupta and aide Rawat, misused provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act to file fabricated gangrape and other criminal cases targeting their opponents in a land dispute in Lucknow.
Rawat, a young woman from Gorakhpur, engaged initially as an assistant in Sangita Gupta’s beauty parlour, became a key figure allegedly coerced into lodging multiple false FIRs orchestrated by Gupta. These complaints accused Arvind Yadav, Avadhesh Yadav, and others of heinous crimes including rape, gang rape and criminal conspiracy.
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The extensive misuse of the legal system came to the attention of the Uttar Pradesh High Court, which ordered a CBI probe into the relationship between Gupta and Rawat and the multiplicity of cases registered by them. The High Court cited multiple FIRs lodged by Rawat against various persons, highlighting a pattern of collusion for financial and personal gain. Her counsel for all these cases was Gupta.
The CBI’s scientific investigation, including mobile location tracking and detailed witness testimonies, contradicted the allegations in these cases, revealing that the purported gang rape incidents did not occur at the claimed times or places, and that Rawat was not present at the locations during the alleged offences.
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The court analysed testimonies and documents, including Rawat’s own contradictory statements under duress and after receiving ‘compensation’ from these cases. It found that Gupta manipulated her, exploiting her Scheduled Caste status to file false cases that could invoke severe punishments and financial compensation under the SC/ST Act rules, thereby pressurising rivals into submission.
Evidence showed that Gupta used these fabricated cases as a ploy to gain advantage in a civil property dispute involving his wife and the accused Yadav family. The court described this conduct as a deliberate abuse of the legal process, involving conspiracy to malign innocent persons by framing them in serious criminal allegations including gangrape, which carry life imprisonment.
The judgment further underscored that Gupta had a history of such legal malpractices, with numerous other criminal cases and FIRs filed at his behest across various jurisdictions, often in collusion with Rawat.
The court referenced recent directives from the Supreme Court and the Lucknow High Court censuring similar abuses of the SC/ST Act and sexual offence laws. The judgment highlighted judicial concerns about the emergence of legal ‘gangs’ that exploit vulnerable persons and misapply protective laws for extorting money, harassing opponents, and clogging the judicial system with frivolous and false litigation.
Gupta has been convicted under multiple sections, including IPC sections 217 and 248 (for filing false charges) and Section 3(2)(5) of the SC/ST Act for criminal conspiracy. He received a composite sentence that includes life imprisonment and Rs 3,00,000 fine (Section 3(2)(5) SC/ST Act).. Rawat was acquitted based on her compliance with terms of pardon (khshama), and the court warned her against future misuse of the SC/ST Act.
The judgment issued stern warnings against misuse of the SC/ST Act and sexual offence laws, emphasising that such abuse not only harms innocent accused but also undermines the very dignity and purpose of these protective laws. It stressed that frivolous and malicious litigations waste judicial resources and severely damage public confidence in the justice delivery system.
The court also directed the police and administrative authorities to maintain records of complainants who repeatedly file such cases to prevent exploitation of the law and protect innocents from harassment.
Further, the Bar Council of India and state authorities were urged to monitor and regulate the conduct of advocates to prevent ethical lapses that degrade the integrity of the legal profession and justice system.
