Ex-NSE chief Chitra Ramkrishna gets relief as Delhi HC rejects CBI plea against bail in alleged illegal phone-tapping case

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday rejected the CBI's challenge to the bail granted to former National Stock Exchange (NSE) managing director and CEO Chitra Ramkrishna in the alleged illegal phone-tapping case involving NSE employees.

Justice Madhu Jain dismissed the CBI's petition challenging the trial court's December 22, 2022 order that granted bail to Ramkrishna.

A detailed copy of the high court's order is awaited.


The case relates to allegations that senior NSE officials, including Ramkrishna, conspired with iSec Services Pvt Ltd to illegally intercept phone calls of NSE employees.

According to the CBI's FIR, the officials allegedly conspired with iSec to cheat NSE and its employees. The agency has alleged that iSec was subsequently engaged to intercept the phone calls as part of the alleged criminal conspiracy.

The high court's decision means the bail granted to Ramkrishna by the trial court remains in place, subject to the detailed order.

Ramkrishna joined NSE as joint managing director in 2009 and held the position until March 31, 2013.

She was appointed managing director and chief executive officer on April 1, 2013, and remained in the post until December 2016.

The phone-tapping case is separate from the co-location case in which Ramkrishna is facing proceedings under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

On September 16, the Supreme Court rejected Ramkrishna's appeal challenging her categorisation as a public servant under the anti-corruption law in the co-location case. The court said the question of whether she was performing a public duty could be raised before the trial court.

The co-location case concerns allegations of improper dissemination of information from NSE's computer servers to select stockbrokers. The CBI has alleged that Ramkrishna abused her position and was involved in a criminal conspiracy linked to the alleged irregularities.

The alleged irregularities took place between 2010 and 2014. In April 2022, the CBI framed charges against Ramkrishna under Sections 13(1)(d) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code.

It is to be noted that the phone-tapping allegations concern a separate set of events involving the interception of NSE employees' calls and the role of iSec Services.