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The Thiruvananathapuram District Court on Monday, December 1, rejected the bail application and remanded Rahul Easwar, a self-proclaimed men's rights activist and TV commentator for allegedly defaming and disclosing the identity of the woman who accused Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil of rape and coercion to terminate a pregnancy.
The court rejected his bail after examining the digital evidence submitted by the prosecution. He will be shifted to Poojapura sub-jail soon.
Rahul was taken into custody in Thiruvananthapuram by the cyber police on November 30, and the arrest was officially recorded late on the same day after several hours of questioning. Police examined his mobile phone, laptop and other electronic devices as part of the probe.
Police booked him under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita including disclosure of identity of victims in sexual assault cases, making sexually coloured remarks, words and gestures to insult modesty of women, criminal intimidation and Section 66 (Computer related offences) of Information Technology Act.
Rejecting Rahul’s bail the court said, the act of making such remarks on social media platforms against the survivor cannot be viewed lightly. “The investigation in the case has just started. In case the accused is released on bail, he is likely to impede the course of investigation. There is every possibility of committing similar offences and tampering with available digital and other evidence involved,” the court said. The court also mentioned that the other accused involved in the case are yet to be arrested and in that circumstances, considering the nature and gravity of the alleged offences the court is not to be enlarged on bail.
The survivor had earlier lodged a complaint with the Thiruvananthapuram Cyber Police. In the complaint, the survivor stated that Rahul Easwar and KPCC general secretary Sandeep Varier repeatedly targeted her on both social and traditional media, questioned her integrity and hinted at her identity.
Apart from Rahul, police booked five others, including Pathanamthitta Mahila Congress district general secretary Ranjitha Pulickal, KPCC general secretary Sandeep Varier, advocate Deepa Joseph, a person handling social media accounts for her, and a vlogger from Palakkad.
They have been accused of defaming the complainant and criminally intimidating her by procuring photographs and particulars and publishing them through Facebook and other social media platforms.
The Kerala Police has issued a strong warning to take action against anyone circulating information about the survivor. District police chiefs have been instructed to enforce the directive, and officers said digital devices used to spread such content will be seized.