Pradyumna Kumar Sahoo v. State of Odisha
In the High Court of Orissa
BLAPL 10971/2023
Before Justice Sashikanta Mishra
Decided on April 26, 2024

Relevancy of the case: Bail application in a case involving the sharing of OTPs and mobile numbers with foreign nationals

Statutes and Provisions Involved

• The Information Technology Act, 2000 (Section 66C, 66D)
• The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Section 34, 120B, 419, 420, 465, 467, 468, 471)

Relevant Facts of the Case

• The police lodged an FIR against Pathani Samanta Lenka, who, along with his associates, engaged in an illegal business of sharing OTPs and mobile numbers with foreign nationals, including Pakistani intelligence officers, on a Facebook group. They gained financial benefits by registering and activating different social platforms.
• Abhijeet Sanjaya Jambure communicated directly with a Pakistani Intelligence officer. Other accused bought and sold SIM cards by indulging in identity theft, forming a conspiracy chain.

Prominent Arguments by the Advocates

• The petitioners’ counsels argued that the allegations against them are too far-fetched. Even if true, the petitioners only bought and sold SIM cards.
• The counsel for the state submitted that Jambure had direct connections with a Pakistani intelligence officer. He transferred money to Pathani Samanta Lenka, who governed the entire operation. One other co-accused also shared sensitive information about the country’s defence installations through one of the SIM cards sold. All the accused were involved in this conspiracy. Hence, the court should not grant them bail.

Opinion of the Bench

• Though linked to each other, all the accused do not stand on the same footing. Lenka managed the operation and directly sent OTPs to Pakistani officers. Further, Jambure directly contacted Pakistani officers. They are guilty of anti-national activities.
• Other accused members bought and sold SIM cards and Paytm wallets. They are guilty of illegal transactions but not of anti-national activities.

Final Decision

• The bench rejected the bail application of Lenka and Jambure but granted bail to other co-accused persons with conditions.

Nandita Karan Yadav, an undergraduate student at the National Law Institute University, Bhopal, prepared this case summary during her internship with The Cyber Blog India in May/June 2024.