Fresh embarrassment has hit The Wire founder Siddharth Varadarajan after the Delhi High Court pulled up the senior journalist for allegedly concealing crucial bail conditions while seeking relief in his OCI card case. In a sharp observation, the court said Varadarajan was prima facie guilty of suppressing material facts, forcing it to recall an order passed just two days earlier in his favour. The court also warned him of serious consequences for the same.
The controversy erupted after the High Court discovered that Varadarajan had failed to disclose an Allahabad High Court condition restraining him from leaving the country without trial court permission. Despite challenging the Centre’s rejection of his OCI application, the founding editor of The Wire allegedly kept silent about the restriction — a move the court indicated could invite “very serious consequences.”
Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav observed that Siddharth Varadarajan did not inform the court about a 2020 Allahabad High Court order in which he was granted anticipatory bail in a criminal case subject to certain conditions, including surrendering his passport and not travelling abroad without prior permission from the trial court concerned.
The court also recalled its May 13 order asking the authorities to consider an application by Varadarajan, a U.S. citizen, for a “return visa” and allowing him to travel to Estonia between May 14 and 19.
Justice Kaurav issued notice to ‘The Wire’ founder Varadarajan and asked him to file an affidavit in seven working days to explain his conduct.
“A perusal of the entire pleadings and the submissions till now by the petitioner, nowhere discloses the binding directions of the Allahabad High Court to the petitioner. In all fairness, the petitioner should have truthfully disclosed the said aspect. The court is prima facie of the opinion that the petitioner is guilty of suppressing material facts,” the court said.
#Breaking
"This will entail very serious consequences."Delhi High Court pulls up The Wire's Siddharth Varadarajan for "suppressing" an Allahabad HC order which restrained him from leaving the country without permission. The Court was today hearing Varadarajan's plea to travel… pic.twitter.com/K73i2R08H0
— Bar and Bench (@barandbench) May 14, 2026
Appearing for Siddharth Varadarajan, his senior counsel expressed regret before the court and said the earlier Allahabad High Court order had unintentionally been left out during the proceedings.
Representing the Centre, Additional Solicitor-General Chetan Sharma argued that the omission was serious and troubling. He told the court that police summons had earlier been issued to Varadarajan in connection with the criminal case and alleged that the Allahabad High Court order had been deliberately kept out of the submissions placed before the Delhi High Court.
What Allahabad High Court Order Said?
The Delhi High Court observed that Siddharth Varadarajan appeared to have withheld important details related to the bail conditions imposed on him while pursuing relief in his OCI card matter. The court warned that the non-disclosure of such material facts could have “very serious consequences” and directed him to file an affidavit explaining the omission.
During the hearing, Additional Solicitor-General Chetan Sharma informed the court that an earlier Allahabad High Court order had restricted Varadarajan from travelling abroad without permission from the concerned trial court while the criminal proceedings against him remain pending.
The Delhi High Court was told that this condition was not disclosed when Varadarajan challenged the Ministry of Home Affairs’ decision rejecting his application for conversion of his Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card into an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card. The issue arose after the government merged the PIO and OCI schemes in 2015, rendering older PIO cards non-machine readable.
