Dhingra used her status as the former chief justice’s daughter to “extort” Rs 2 lakh from her husband Rajesh Dhingra, a Doordarshan employee, the Delhi High Court observed today.

She had also lodged an FIR, accusing Rajesh’s family of dowry harassment (under Section 498-A IPC).

The couple had married in February 2000, when both were based in Ajmer. Answering a nuptial advertisement put out by Rajesh, Asha introduced herself as a “virgin, a qualified doctor and daughter to Justice S N Bhargava”.

But within two years, Rajesh came to know that his wife was only a “matric pass and daughter of one Atma Ram Aggarwal”. In retaliation, Asha lodged two complaints against Rajesh and his family in the Crime Against Women Cells at Kirti Nagar and Nanakpura here. Both complaints were closed for lack of evidence.

But she followed it up with the domestic cruelty and dowry harassment FIR, registered in July 2003.

Subsequent investigation, though, led to her dénouement: police found Asha had carried out a series of impersonations at different stages of her life. The investigating officer found that besides being the daughter of Justice Bhargava, she had also claimed to be a Central School teacher in Assam, one “Dr Asha Aggarwal” in Kota (Rajasthan), a gynaecologist who wrote a letter to the Health Minister in 2003, Deputy Secretary (Home) of Sikkim, and lecturer with Jaipur College.

The probe report submitted before the High Court said she was a mother of two by the time she married Rajesh.

Quashing the FIR against Rajesh and his family, Justice Shiv Narayan Dhingra of Delhi HC today said, “The counsel for the respondent (Asha) himself is unable to explain her conduct and why she falsely claims to be the daughter of Justice S N Bhargava...

“I consider she was out to misuse the name of Justice Bhargava to extort money by lodging false FIRs... She is an impersonator and a cheat.”

The judge said stringent provisions of dowry harassment law should not be used as a tool for harassment and extortion.