Delhi High Court Upholds Contempt Conviction In Siemens Software Piracy Case, Cuts Jail Term To One Month

The Delhi High Court has upheld the civil contempt finding against Nilesh Dhanukar for obstructing a court-appointed Local Commissioner during an inspection into alleged unauthorised use of Siemens Industry Software's “NX” software.

However, the court reduced his detention in civil prison from two months to one month, citing his family circumstances.

A Division Bench of Justice V. Kameswar Rao and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora was hearing Dhanukar's appeal against a Saket commercial court order that had held him guilty of civil contempt and sentenced him to two months in civil prison.

Siemens had filed a commercial suit alleging corporate infringement involving its proprietary NX software.

On August 10, 2023, the commercial court barred the defendants and those acting for them from reproducing, selling, storing, installing or using pirated or unlicensed software, including NX. It also appointed a Local Commissioner to inspect the premises and inventorise and seize computer systems and other hardware found to be using the software.

During the inspection on August 17 and 18, 2023, the Local Commissioner reported that around 50-60 employees surrounded and physically obstructed his team

The report also recorded that eight CPUs and three hard disks were transferred to an adjoining property. The owner of that property told the Commissioner that the equipment had been placed there by the employees without his permission.

After police assistance was ultimately obtained, the Commissioner returned to the premises with police personnel. Dhanukar was present at the factory gate and stated that he would permit the inspection only subject to several conditions, including restrictions on the number of people and technical experts entering the premises, identity documents, mobile phones, pen drives, photographs and videography. The conditions were not accepted, following which the gate was closed and the inspection could not be carried out.

Siemens subsequently initiated contempt proceedings over the alleged disobedience of the injunction and obstruction of the Local Commissioner. The commercial court held Dhanukar guilty of civil contempt on May 18, 2026 and rejected his unconditional apology, observing that his conduct throughout the proceedings showed no genuine remorse. On July 25, it sentenced him to two months in civil prison.

The High Court rejected Dhanukar's argument that he could not be personally held responsible for the obstruction by employees. It noted that he was present at the police chowki on August 17 and at the factory premises the following day, where he refused entry to the Local Commissioner unless his conditions were met.

“As such, it is clear that the appellant was personally involved in the obstruction of the Commission and thereby, in disobedience/breach of the order of the Trial Court,” the bench held.

The bench also upheld the commercial court's reliance on Autodesk Inc. & Another v. Arup Das & Others, observing that a Local Commissioner appointed by a court is an “extended arm and agent of the Court” and that obstructing the Commissioner amounts to obstruction of justice.

The court further rejected the argument that the contempt proceedings became infructuous after the main suit was decreed on February 19, 2026. It observed that the contempt petition had been filed on September 18, 2023, before the decree, and that the later decree did not erase the earlier disobedience of the interim injunction.

The High Court also found no infirmity in the commercial court's rejection of Dhanukar's apology. It noted that references to his post-decree conduct, non-payment of damages, and continued use of the software were made while assessing whether his apology was sincere and adequate.

The Bench declined to replace the custodial sentence with community service or another non-custodial measure, observing that Dhanukar's actions were “a direct affront to the judicial system and the rule of law.”

The court nevertheless granted partial relief after considering Dhanukar's personal circumstances.

“Considering the submission that the appellant is a divorced parent of a minor child who is in his custody, and that he is also the sole caregiver of his ailing father, we reduce the sentence of imprisonment imposed by the Trial Court by a month,” the bench held.

Dhanukar will therefore undergo detention in civil prison for one month instead of two. The High Court has granted him 15 days to surrender before the authorities at Central Jail, Tihar.