The man’s wife has accused unidentified people and local Meira Paibis of subjecting him and his family to a social-media “media trial”, alleging harassment and abetment of suicide. The allegations remain unproven.
BY PC Bureau
October 1: A cybercrime case over an allegedly obscene Facebook comment has taken a fatal turn in Manipur, with a 60-year-old man from Imphal East dying in hospital days after he was arrested and released in connection with the case.
The man was admitted to the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences on Wednesday afternoon after allegedly consuming Indorma Phosphide. He died while undergoing treatment the following day.
Following his death, his wife lodged a separate complaint alleging criminal intimidation, criminal conspiracy and mental harassment, besides accusing unidentified people and some local Meira Paibis from the Naoriya Pangthanglakpa Assembly constituency of conducting what she described as a social-media “media trial”.
The original case was registered by the Cyber Crime Police Station on a complaint from Sagolsem Sushil Singh, who said he was the elder brother of the woman referred to in the Facebook post.
Police said an account operating under the name “P Premananda” posted what they described as an “obscene, profane and highly objectionable” comment concerning the woman on September 26 at about 8.15 pm.
The case was registered under Sections 79 and 296 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 67 of the Information Technology Act. Section 79 deals with words, gestures or acts intended to insult the modesty of a woman, while Section 296 deals with obscene acts and words in or near a public place.
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The man was arrested on September 29 and subsequently released. A Cyber Crime Police officer said the offences invoked were bailable. He was also served a written notice under Section 175 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita requiring him to cooperate with the investigation.
According to the officer, the man provided his statement, technical checks were conducted and a device seized from him was examined. The officer said the chargesheet was nearing completion before the man’s death.
Wife alleges social-media harassment
His wife alleged that accusations against her husband and his family were circulated through Facebook, WhatsApp and other platforms, damaging his reputation and causing him severe mental distress.
She has alleged that this harassment contributed to his death and amounted to abetment of suicide.
Those allegations remain to be investigated. At present, there is no established finding that the social-media campaign caused the man’s decision to consume poison or that any individual committed abetment of suicide.
The case also comes amid heightened scrutiny of social-media activity in Manipur. The state police’s latest administrative report says its Cyber Crime Police and social-media monitoring teams operate round the clock across platforms including Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and WhatsApp to identify objectionable posts and comments.
