HC directs man to offer prayer at 'Rajghat' for lying

A man who lied before a court has been asked by Delhi High Court to offer prayer at the Rajghat daily for two hours and clean the areas surrounding the memorial of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi as "atonement" for the "sin".

A man who lied before a court has been asked by Delhi High Court to offer prayer at the Rajghat daily for two hours and clean the areas surrounding the memorial of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi as "atonement" for the "sin".

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The Delhi High Court, however, directed the Samadhi management committee to pay a compensation of Rs 35,000 to
Kanhaiya Lal, who worked as security guard there, for illegally sacking him.

"...This court would not recommend any action of initiating perjury proceedings against him and would rather
direct the petitioner to offer his daily prayers for at least two hours for a period of one month to seek atonement for
committing the sin of being untruthful to the Court of Law," said Justice Kailash Gambhir in a judgement.

The court also directed him to help clean the area surrounding the Samadhi for one month.

"It is no doubt that falsehood is easy and truth difficult but that does not entail that the virtue of truthfulness be worn like a garment, worn and removed at our own will. It would not be wrong to say that in the time of universal deceit today, speaking truth seems like a revolutionary act," it said.

Meanwhile, the court directed the Samadhi committee to pay him a compensation of Rs 35,000 for terminating him
without following the proper procedure of law.

Lal filed a petition seeking a direction to Rajghat Samadhi Committee to re-instate him.

The petitioner claimed he was working there from 1990 to 1999. However, the court found discrepancy in his version
and noted that the records established that he had been working since September, 1997.

Lal later admitted before the court to have lied and pleaded for a lenient view on his false claims.