IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH

206 Date of decision : 23.09.2025 Rohit ….Petitioner V/S State of Punjab ….Respondents CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE NAMIT KUMAR Present: Mr. Abhimanyu Batra, Advocate for the petitioner.

Mr. Hemant Aggarwal, D.A.G., Punjab.

Mr. Navraj Singh, Advocate for respondent No.2.

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NAMIT KUMAR , J. (ORAL)

1. The petitioner has filed the instant petition under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short ‘the BNSS) seeking anticipatory bail in case FIR No.37 dated 12.05.2025 registered under Sections 376 & 509 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and Section 67-A of Information Technology Act, 2008 at Women Police Station, District Police Commissionerate Jalandhar.

2. Status report by way of an affidavit of Sh. Sanjay Kumar, PPS, Assistant Commissioner of Police, NDPS/PBI-cum-CAW & Children, Jalandhar, on behalf of the respondent-State, filed in the Registry is taken on record.

3. Brief facts of the case are that on 14.01.2025, the prosecutrix moved a complaint to the Commissioner of Police, Jalandhar levelling allegations against Rohit (the present petitioner) that she had friendly relationship with the petitioner prior to her marriage but she was not having physical relations with him. During friendship, the petitioner had asked for her photographs and she had sent her photographs on mobile phone of the petitioner. Thereafter, she got married in the year 2020 and was not in contact with the petitioner in any manner. After a period of one and a half years of her marriage, the petitioner obtained her mobile number from someone and tried to talk to her. When she refused to meet him or talk to him, he threatened her that he would create obscene images from the photos he had and defame her. Thereafter, the petitioner created her obscene photographs and by threatening to circulate the same, he committed rape upon her several times at various places. Even he has intimidated her and extorted lakhs of rupees from her. On 03.01.2025, the petitioner threatened her and called her to Amrtisar. From Amritsar Bus Stand he forcibly took her to a hotel, where he tried to make physical relations with her and when she refused, he assaulted her and snatched her mobile phone. Thereafter, the petitioner has created fake WhatsApp group in the name of prosecutrix on 05.01.2025 and circulated edited obscene photographs of the prosecutrix in the group. On the basis of the said complaint, the instant FIR was registered.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the present case. He submits that the relationship between the petitioner and the prosecutrix was consensual in nature, however, around January, 2025, certain differences arose between them on account of financial demands raised by the prosecutrix. The prosecutrix threatened the petitioner to implicate him in a false case of rape unless he paid a sum of Rs.15,00,000/- to her. This dispute culminated in a complaint lodged by the prosecutrix on 14.01.2025 before the Police, however, no FIR was registered at that time and the matter was taken to the local village Panchayat for settlement. The prosecutrix’s family exerted pressure upon the petitioner’s family and his uncle (Chaha) to tender a public apology on behalf of the petitioner. In order to settle the dispute, the father and uncle of the petitioner tendered unconditional apology in front of the whole village Panchayat and uncle of the prosecutrix had recorded a video of the apology tendered by the father and uncle of the petitioner. The family members of the prosecutrix have raised a demand of Rs.15,00,000/- from the family of the petitioner. Due to humiliation and financial demands of the prosecutrix’s family, uncle of the petitioner has committed suicide on 08.02.2025. A suicide note was also recovered, wherein the uncle of the petitioner has pointed towards the harassment meted out by the prosecutrix and her