Shajeeb Khan v. State of Kerala
In the High Court of Kerala
B.A. 8074/2015 
Before Justice Hariprasad 
Decided on December 18, 2015 

Relevancy of the case: Bail application in a case involving the hacking of a website containing pornographic photographs and involvement of the applicant in online sex rackets.

Statutes and Provisions Involved

• The Information Technology Act, 2000 (Section 67, 67B, 67C, 67D)
• The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Section 370(1), 34)
• The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (Section 13, 14(1))
• The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Section 439)  

Relevant Facts of the Case

• The petitioner filed this bail application under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. 
• The petitioner was the fifth accused to the cyber crime case that was registered by the police in its suo moto capacity. 
• Upon scrutiny, the police had discovered advertisements on the internet comprising child sex trafficking. 
• The petitioner was accused of hacking a site with the name “kochusundarikal” wherein the police discovered pornographic photographs, information regarding the flesh trade, and sleaze comments.  
• Further investigations proved that the petitioner was involved in online sex racketing. 
• He was arrested on June 17, 2015, and has been in custody since then.  

Prominent Arguments by the Advocate

• Upon perusal of the diary given by the prosecutor, for perusal, it was clear that the petitioner was involved in the offences levelled against him and therefore it led to the advancement of an investigation by the police. 

Opinion of the Bench

• The court was of the opinion to release the petitioner on bail, as he followed the regulations given under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. 

Final Decision

• The application was allowed. 
• Bail was granted to the petitioner subject to conditions laid down by the court.  

This case summary has been prepared by Tuba Aftab, an undergraduate student at IIMT & School of Law, GGSIPU, during her internship with The Cyber Blog India in May/June 2021.