LI Network
Published on: 29 July 2023 at 19:00 IST
Three female students, who were accused of allegedly filming a classmate in a washroom at Netra Jyoti Paramedical College, have been granted bail by a court in Udupi on Friday. Additional Civil Judge Shyam Prakash presided over the bail pleas filed by the accused students.
Advocate Asadullah Katpadi, representing the petitioner-students, contended that the case was driven by political motives and pointed out that the complaint did not originate from the affected student.
He vehemently asserted the innocence of the accused and sought bail, citing the relevant judgment in Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar by the Supreme Court.
Considering the arguments put forth, the court accepted the plea and granted bail to the three students under the condition that each of them submits a personal bond of ₹20,000. Additionally, they were instructed to cooperate fully with the investigators and attend all scheduled court hearings. The court emphasized that witnesses must not face any form of intimidation.
The alleged incident occurred on July 18, leading to the suspension of the three accused girls from the college. Although the student who was filmed did not file a complaint, the police registered a first information report (FIR) against the three students and the college management on July 26.
The charges against the accused students and the college management include Sections 509 (word, gesture, or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), 204 (destruction of document or electronic record to prevent its production as evidence), 175 (omission to produce document or electronic record to public servant by a person legally bound to produce it), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Additionally, they were booked under Section 66(e) (punishment for violation of privacy) of the Information Technology Act.