The Sessions Court in Kozhikode recently made a significant decision, denying anticipatory bail to journalist T.P. Nandakumar. This ruling comes after the Ernakulam Cyber Crime police initiated a First Information Report (FIR) against him on August 29th. The case centers on allegations that Nandakumar posted obscene material in a YouTube video, targeting none other than Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
The journalist is being prosecuted under Section 192 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which addresses the offense of deliberately provoking intent to incite a riot. Additionally, he faces charges under Sections 67 and 67(a) of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act of 2008, both pertaining to the publication or transmission of offensive or obscene content in electronic formats.
Sessions Judge V.S. Bindukumari, in her decision to dismiss the anticipatory bail application, highlighted that Nandakumar is currently embroiled in approximately five similar cases. This history, the judge noted, underscored the necessity of his custodial interrogation for a thorough investigation.