Allahabad High Court grants bail to rape accused but orders him not to put victim's photo as DP on WhatsApp or Facebook

The Allahabad High Court recently ordered a man accused of committing rape on the pretext of marriage to not put the alleged victim's (complainant) photo as his display picture on WhatsApp or Facebook as a condition for his release on bail [Gulfran v State of UP]..Justice Mohd. Faiz Alam Khan passed the direction while warning that violation of this bail condition would be sufficient to cancel the relief granted to the accused."The applicant shall not display any picture of prosecutrix as his DP of WhatsApp or Facebook and violation of this condition alone would be sufficient to cancel the facility of bail granted to the applicant," the order stated. The Court also directed the accused not to attempt to contact the complainant, any of her family members or any prosecution witness directly or through any online platform, including WhatsApp and Facebook.The accused was directed to file an undertaking in this regard before the trial court..The order was passed on a bail plea by a man accused of rape (Section 376) and criminal intimidation (Section 506) under the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The complainant, a 20-year-old woman, alleged that the accused established sexual relations with her on the pretext of marriage and also made a private video to blackmail her. The accused, however, denied the allegations and argued that it was a case of false implication. His counsel argued that the complainant had been in a consensual relationship with the accused since 2019. He added that the accused has been in jail since July 25 and that the chargesheet has already been filed..The State government opposed the bail, arguing that the accused had committed a heinous offence. The counsel representing the victim submitted that the accused had sexually exploited her with a false promise of marriage and later refused to marry her. It was also alleged that the victim was being blackmailed on the basis of some photographs. .The Court eventually granted bail after considering that the accused had been in jail since July 25 and did not have any previous criminal history. “The presence of the applicant could be secured before the trial court by placing adequate conditions,” the Court added while allowing the plea for bail. .Advocate Prashansa Singh and Suresh Kumar Mishra represented the accused. Government Advocate Rajbaksh Singh represented the State while advocate Ram Baksh Singh represented the complainant. .[Read Order]