Ibrahim Ali v. State of U.P.
In the High Court of Allahabad
C.A. 14260/2019
Before Justice Sudhir Agarwal
Decided on April 20, 2020

Relevancy of the case: Bail application in a case involving a photoshopped picture of UP Chief Minister

Statutes and Provisions Involved

• The Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000 (Section 66, 67)
• The Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860 (Section 295A, 124A)
• The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Section 439)

Relevant Facts of the Case

• It is alleged that the petitioner created a shameful picture of the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh using photoshop and uploaded it on Facebook.
• Here, the petitioner has applied for bail.

Prominent Arguments by the Advocates

• The petitioner’s counsel argued that the position of the Chief Minister is a constitutional office and cannot be said to be a person who represents a particular religion, negating Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. Further, the alleged photoshop on social media is not covered by Sections 66 or 67 of the Information Technology Act, 2000.

Opinion of the Bench

• The duration for which an accused has remained in jail before conviction is relevant because if they are not guilty, it would be a travesty of justice to keep them in jail for years together.

Final Decision

• Appeal allowed.
• Bail granted with conditions.

This case summary has been prepared by Ria Verma, an undergraduate student at Symbiosis Law School, Noida, during her internship with The Cyber Blog India in January/February 2o21.