File supplementary challan under IT Act, High Court directs Una SP

The HP High Court has directed the Superintendent of Police, Una, to ensure that a supplementary challan is filed before the Special Court, Una, under Section 67 A of the Information Technology Act within two weeks in a matter pertaining to the uploading of obscene photographs of a victim on the internet.

Justice Sandeep Sharma made it clear that failure of the authority to do so would render itself liable for penal consequences, which would also invite contempt proceedings. Justice Sandeep Sharma passed the order on a petition filed by a victim wherein she had alleged that despite there being cogent and convincing evidence adduced on record by the investigating agency in FIR No. 90 of 2022, lodged at Amb police station in Una district, no supplementary challan is being filed against the accused under Section 67A of the IT Act. As a result, the petitioner is facing prejudice though he has already suffered continuous mental harassment at the hands of the accused named in the FIR.

It was alleged that the accused named in the FIR, one of whom is an elected representative of the Himachal Legislative Assembly, caused mental harassment and trauma to the petitioner by uploading obscene photographs of her on the internet and thereafter continuously issued threats to her in case she filed a complaint against them.

It was alleged that obscene photographs made viral on the internet were not of her. Rather, the accused had edited them as he had animosity with her on account of her having put forth her claim to contest the election from the Legislative Assembly seat, qua which, ultimately one of the accused named in the FIR, was allotted ticket by the Congress.

It was alleged in the petition that though in 2022, the police, after investigating the matter, had filed a challan under Sections 506 and 509 of the IPC against the accused and also undertook before the Special Court to file a supplementary challan under Section 67A of the I.T. Act, no steps were taken till date to file a supplementary challan under Section 67A.