No Criminal Antecedents: Kerala High Court Grants Bail To Teenager Accused Of Posting Girl's Nude Photos On Social Media

The Kerala High Court has granted bail to a teenager who was accused of posting nude photos of a girl on social media and sexually harassing her.

An Application was filed by the accused, seeking bail in connection with a case registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act).

A Single Bench of Justice Jobin Sebastian observed, “… as rightly pointed out by the learned counsel for the petitioner, the petitioner was a teenager at the time of the alleged commission of the offence. No criminal antecedents have been pointed out against him. The petitioner was arrested in connection with this case on 15.11.2025 and has been under judicial custody since then.”

Advocate Azeem Salih represented the Petitioner, while Public Prosecutor Sangeethraj represented the Respondents.

Case Background

The prosecution allegation was that the Petitioner-accused with sexual intent, during the period from the year 2023 till July 2025, stalked the survivor girl through social media platforms and also near the school. It was alleged that the accused demanded the survivor to send her nude photographs to him through WhatsApp and obtained the same. Allegedly, he published the said photographs through social media and thereby sexually harassed the survivor. Hence, the offences alleged were under Sections 12 read with 11(ii) and 11(iv) of the POCSO Act, Section 78 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS), and Sections 66(E) and 67(B) of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (IT Act).

The Petitioner was arrested on November 15, 2025. 

Contentions

The counsel for the accused submitted that the Petitioner was a teenager at the time of the alleged commission of the offence and, considering his young age, some leniency has to be shown in the matter of bail. It was further submitted that he was in love with the victim girl and that, after the breakup of the said relationship, a case was falsely foisted at the instigation of the parents of the victim girl.

Court’s Observations

The High Court in the above context of the case, said, “The electronic gadgets allegedly used for the commission of the offence have already been recovered. The investigation in the case has reached a major and crucial stage and is on the verge of completion.”

The Court was of the view that as the investigation has substantially progressed, further judicial incarceration of the Petitioner, who was a teenager at the relevant time, is unwarranted.

The Court, therefore, granted bail to the accused, subject to the following conditions –

1. Petitioner shall execute a bond for Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees One lakh only) with two solvent sureties each for the like sum to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional Court.

2. The Petitioner shall not contact the victim girl, either directly or indirectly, or through any electronic or social media platforms.

3. The Petitioner shall appear before the Investigating Officer on every Monday between 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. for a period of three months or until the final report is filed, whichever occurs first.

4. The Petitioner shall co-operate with the investigation and shall not, directly or indirectly, make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case so as to dissuade him from disclosing such facts to the Court or to any police officer.

5. Petitioner shall not leave India without permission of the jurisdictional Court.

6. Petitioner shall not commit any offence while on bail.

7. If the Petitioner violates any of the above conditions, the investigating officer is at liberty to file an appropriate application for cancellation of bail before the jurisdictional Court and if such an application is filed, the jurisdictional Court can pass appropriate Orders irrespective of the fact that this Order is passed by this Court.

Accordingly, the High Court granted bail to the accused.

Cause Title- Amal v. State of Kerala (Neutral Citation: 2025:KER:98913)

Appearance:

Petitioner: Advocates Azeem Salih, B. Vinod, and Hamdan Mansoor K.

Respondents: Public Prosecutor Sangeethraj

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