Numerous pictures of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi turn up in search results when the key words "top 10 criminals" are used for an image search, prompting Google to issue an apology.

"Sometimes, the way images are described on the Internet can yield surprising results to specific queries. We apologize for any confusion or misunderstanding this has caused. We're continually working to improve our algorithms to prevent unexpected results like this," said a company spokesperson.

The company has also issued a disclaimer on top of its search results: "These results don't reflect Google's opinion or our beliefs; our algorithms automatically matched the query to web pages with these images."

The US tech giant has not complied with calls to remove the politician's image from search results, according to The Washington Post.

In defence, Google explained that the anomalous search results were caused by a British newspaper posting an image of Modi with error-ridden metadata.

Modi was accused in 2002 of attempted genocide during riots with anti-Muslim sentiments in the Gujarat province. He has already been cleared of the charges by Indian courts. A US judge also set aside a lawsuit filed against him.

Photos of Al Capone and George W. Bush also turn up when the key words are used.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates, 1993 Mumbai bombings mastermind Dawood Ibrahim, and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also appear, said Time.

Google apologised last month after searches that include racist terms in connection with US President Barack Obama found the White House on Google Maps, The Guardian said on Thursday.

In 2010, its search auto-complete system suggested racist questions when the word "why" is typed.

Google's advertising system was 25 percent more likely to bring up ads for criminal record checks when searching for names linked with African-Americans, according to a study by a Harvard professor.