Overview
- A Nagpur bench of Justices Urmila Joshi-Phalke and Nandesh S. Deshpande held that Facebook posts alleged to defame or harass a woman can attract IPC Sections 354 and 354-D.
- The judges said a prior relationship or financial dealings do not give a man a license to publish objectionable content about a woman online.
- Dismissing the Section 482 CrPC application, the bench said its inherent powers are to be used sparingly and not to stifle a legitimate prosecution.
- The FIR alleges multiple defamatory posts in 2019, a pre-wedding visit with a bottle of poison, and continued online stalking intended to disrupt the woman’s marital life.
- The applicant argues the parties had a romance, claims he lent Rs 2.88 lakh, and has a private complaint pending before a Baramati magistrate; the court said such disputed facts must be resolved at trial in Tukaram v. State of Maharashtra.