New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted protection from arrest to actor Gehana Vashisht in a porn film case that has seen several arrests so far, including that of Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty’s husband Raj Kundra.
Advocate Ajit Wagh, representing Vashisht, argued before a bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and BR Gavai that the prosecution had said that they needed custody to unearth the pornography racket. He said that the first FIR was based on a tip and Yasmin was nabbed.
Wagh argued that a larger investigation was going on and the police found that the petitioner was a friend of Yasmin. He said, Gehna is in custody for 133 days. The charge sheet has been filed in the first FIR. The ingredients are all the same.
Three FIRs were registered against Vashishth for creating obscene material and uploading them on certain OTT platforms. He has got bail in two FIRs. In July, the Crime Branch of Mumbai Police had registered the third FIR.
After hearing the arguments in the case, the top court ordered that Vashisht should not be arrested in the third FIR and he should also join the investigation whenever required.
On 7 September, the Bombay High Court rejected Vashisht’s anticipatory bail plea. She had filed an anticipatory bail plea with apprehension of arrest in an FIR registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, which included outraging the modesty of a woman, sale of obscene material. Today, the apex court stayed the Bombay High Court order which had dismissed the anticipatory bail plea filed by him.
The case was registered after police received a complaint which claimed that Vashisht, who was allegedly a director of pornographic films, lured women money to act in “obscene film videos”. The complainant woman alleged that she was forced to make obscene videos for Vashisht’s films, which were uploaded on a mobile application.
Businessman Raj Kundra, who is also an accused in another FIR registered in the porn film case, was granted bail by the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of Mumbai earlier this week.
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