Thomaskutty Joseph v. State of Kerala
In the High Court of Kerala
B.A. 439/2023
Before Justice B.K. Thomas
Decided on January 17, 2023

Relevancy of the Case: Bail application in a case involving allegations of rape and non-consensual uploading of photos on Instagram

Statutes and Provisions Involved

• The Information Technology Act, 2000 (Section 67A)
• The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Section 376(1), 376(2)(n), 506)

Relevant Facts of the Case

• The complaint states that the petitioner committed the victim’s rape on a false promise of marriage. Further, he published her photos on Instagram.

Prominent Arguments by the Advocates

• The petitioner’s counsel argued the prosecution’s allegations were false. The alleged incident did not occur. There was no fraudulent promise of marriage. Moreover, consent for a sexual relationship was not obtained through any such promise. Furthermore, the petitioner is willing to marry the victim even at present.
• The public prosecutor opposed the grant of the bail. She submitted that the allegations were serious. Despite his young age, there is a high risk of him absconding.

Opinion of the Bench

• The continued detention of the petitioner is not necessary.

Final Decision

• The court accepted the bail application with conditions.

Aditi Sharma, an undergraduate student at NMIMS School of Law, Indore, prepared this case summary during her internship with The Cyber Blog India in May/June 2023.