Not of sound mind: Allahabad High Court orders mental exam of blackmail accused

Published 20 July 2026 · india

The Allahabad High Court, while hearing a bail plea in a blackmail case involving obscene photographs and social media posts, has directed that the accused

The Allahabad High Court, while hearing a bail plea in a blackmail case involving obscene photographs and social media posts, has directed that the accused undergo a mental examination. The court said that, based on the messages and posts sent by the applicant, he did not appear to be a person of sound mind. Justice Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal passed the order while hearing the bail plea of Rahul Kumar Saroj, who is accused of obtaining obscene photographs of the victim and blackmailing her. The court also refused to grant him bail after examining the language of the messages and the material allegedly posted on social media.

Read Full Story In its order, the court said, "On a perusal of the messages and social-media posts sent by the applicant, this court found that the applicant is not a person of sound mind. Therefore, the chief medical officer (CMO), Kaushambi, is directed to conduct his mental examination and keep it on record of the file of this case before the district court concerned." The case was registered at Manjhanpur police station in Uttar Pradesh's Kaushambi district under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, sections 3 and 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, and section 66E of the Information Technology Act.

According to the prosecution, the FIR was lodged on the victim's complaint alleging that the accused hacked her mobile phone, obtained her obscene photographs and then blackmailed her, threatening to upload them on social media. Police later arrested the accused. In her statements before the police and a magistrate, the victim alleged that the accused used her obscene videos and photographs to blackmail her and demanded Rs 5 lakh by posting messages on Instagram and sending direct messages. During the hearing, counsel for the accused argued that he had been in a relationship with the victim and was falsely implicated after he refused to marry her.

Opposing the bail plea, the state's counsel placed before the court the messages allegedly sent by the accused to the victim and her relatives, along with the woman's photographs posted on social media. In the order dated July 17, the judge said, "Considering the language and nature of messages and the nature of photographs and videos posted by the accused on social media, this court is not inclined to release the accused on bail." The court thus declined bail and directed a mental examination of the accused. Ends With PTI inputs