'Bhaiyaa is back' posters of rape accused with emojis of crowns and hearts show power he wields: Supreme Court cancels bail

The bail granted by the Madhya Pradesh High Court to a rape accused student youth wing leader was cancelled by the Supreme Court on Thursday after it was brought to the notice of the Court about the accused being welcomed with posters which said "Bhaiyaa is back" and "Welcome to role Janeman" [Ms P vs State of Madhya Pradesh]..A bench of Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, Justices Krishna Murari and Hima Kohli noted that the captions on the posters along with abundant use of emojis of crown and hearts indicated the power wielded by the accused in the society and has put fear in mind of complainant that she would not get a fair trial."The captions tagged to his photographs on the social media highlight the superior position and power wielded by the rape accused and his family in the society and its deleterious impact on the appellant/complainant," the Court observed. .As per the complaint, the accused had established physical relationship with her on the false pretext of marrying her. The complaint stated that he had put vermilion on the woman's forehead and tied a mangalsutra at a private ceremony though he refused to acknowledge her in public.It was also alleged that when she became pregnant, she was forced to undergo an abortion. Thereafter, he started avoiding her and stopped returning her calls. When confronted by the complainant, he categorically refused to solemnize their marriage.She subsequently filed a rape case and the accused was arrested. The Madhya Pradesh High Court granted him bail in November 2021. The complainant woman then approached the apex court in appeal, highlighting how photographs of the accused had appeared on social media after his release on bail.The photographs had posters with the faces of some influential persons of the society in the backdrop, welcoming him with captions like “Bhaiyaa is back”, “Back to Bhaiyaa”, and “Welcome to Role Janeman”..The Supreme Court noted that the posters with such captions welcoming the accused after being granted bail "amplify the celebratory mood of the accused and his supporters on his having been released from detention in less than two months of being taken into custody for a grave offence that entails sentence of not less than ten years that may even extend to life.".Such brazen conduct has evoked fear in the mind of the complainant that she would not get fair trial, the Court said. "The brazen conduct of the accused has evoked a bona fide fear in the mind of the appellant/complainant that she would not get a free and fair trial if he remains enlarged on bail and that there is a likelihood of his influencing the material witnesses," the order said. .The top court noted that for cancelling bail granted by a court below, the higher court must consider whether any supervening circumstances have arisen or the conduct of the accused post grant of bail demonstrates that it is no longer conducive to a fair trial to permit him to retain his freedom by enjoying the concession of bail during trial..As per the top court, some of the circumstances where bail granted to the accused under Section 439 (1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure can be cancelled are: a) If he misuses his liberty by indulging in similar/other criminal activity; b) If he interferes with the course of investigation; c) If he attempts to tamper with the evidence; d) If he attempts to influence/threaten the witnesses; e) If he evades or attempts to evade court proceedings; f) If he indulges in activities which would hamper smooth investigation; g) If he is likely to flee from the country; h) If he attempts to make himself scarce by going underground and/or becoming unavailable to the investigating agency;i) If he attempts to place himself beyond the reach of his surety. If any facts may emerge after the grant of bail which are considered unconducive to a fair trial..The counsel for the accused contended that he is a student leader who belongs to a community that celebrates the festival “Maa Narmada Jayanti” and the posters in question have nothing to do with his being released on bail. However, the Court said that captions referred to above with emojis of crowns and hearts thrown in for good measure, belie this version."Even if it is assumed that the posters in question were not contemporaneous to the release of the respondent No.2 (accused) from detention, the captions tagged to his photographs on the social media highlight the superior position and power wielded by the respondent No.2 and his family in the society and its deleterious impact on the appellant/complainant. The emojis of crowns and hearts tagged with the captions quoted above are devoid of any religious sentiments sought to be portrayed by the respondent No.2," the Court stated. It, therefore, cancelled the bail and ordered the accused to surrender within a week. "This order shall also not preclude the respondent No.2 from applying afresh for bail at a later stage, if any, new circumstances are brought to light," the bench made it clear. .[Read Order]