Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC:84317 Court No. - 68 Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. BAIL APPLICATION No. - 9025 of 2025 Applicant :- Vinod Kumar Opposite Party :- State of U.P. Counsel for Applicant :- Vineet Kumar Singh Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A. Hon'ble Ashutosh Srivastava,J. Rejoinder affidavit filed in the Court today is taken on record. Heard Shri Vineet Kumar Singh, learned counsel for the applicant, Sri Vijendra Kumar, learned AGA for the State-respondents and perused the record. The present bail application at the instance of the applicant- Vinod Kumar has been filed seeking enlargement on bail in Case Crime No. 18 of 2024 under Sections 419, 420, 467, 468, 471, 186 I.P.C. and Sections 66, 66C, 66D, 72 and 72A of the Information Technology Act, Police Station- Cyber Crime, District- Hamirpur during the pendency of the trial before the court below. The applicant is stated to be running a licenced Jan Sewa Kendra in District Maharajganj. The FIR giving rise to the case crime number aforementioned is stated to have been lodged by the A.D.M., Sadar, Hamirpur with the allegation that some unknown persons by way of committing cyber crime and hacking the login IDs of the informant have succeeded in getting the monetary relief transferred to their accounts which relief was intended for the farmers affected by the Hailstorm which took place on 20.02.2024 and 03.03.2024 resulting in substantial loss to their crops. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant was not named in the FIR and his name has surfaced from the confessional statement of the co-accused, Anil Vishwakarma recorded during the investigation. Apprehending his arrest, the applicant approached this Court by means of Writ Petition No. 16502 of 2024 which Criminal Writ Petition was disposed of vide order dated 17.09.2024 granting protection to the applicant for 60 days and requiring him to seek regular/Anticipatory Bail which was to be considered in terms of the ratio laid down by the Apex Court in Satendra Kumar Antil vs. C.B.I. and Another. The Anticipatory Bail preferred by the applicant was also disposed of vide order dated 04.12.2024 requiring the applicant to obtain regular bail. The regular bail of the applicant was rejected by the Additional Sessions Judge, Ist, Hamirpur vide order dated 18.02.2025 whereafter the present Bail Application has been filed. The applicant is languishing in jail since 17.12.2024. It is next contended by learned counsel for the applicant that chargesheet against the co-accused Anil Vishwakarma who has named the applicant in his confessional statement has been filed on 07.11.2024 while the investigation against the applicant and other co-accused Satyam and Bhullar is going on. The only evidence against the applicant is the confessional statement of the co- accused Anil Vishwakarma. Hence bail has been prayed for. Learned AGA has opposed the bail plea by filing counter affidavit. In the counter affidavit, it has been averred that the applicant is involved in the crime and hacked into the system altered the account details of the beneficiaries and facilitated online transfer of the relief funds to unauthorised individuals. The laptop used in the crime has been recovered from the possession of the applicant from his residence. Details of the beneficiaries along with bank account details have been disclosed in para 10 of the counter affidavit. All the beneficiaries are the mother, sister, father, grandfather, brother, besides the applicant himself. It is submitted that the applicant is directly involved in the offence alleged and if released on bail will either abscond or tamper the prosecution evidences and hamper the fair and impartial trail. Hence the bail application is liable to be rejected. In the rejoinder affidavit, learned counsel for the applicant has averred that the chargesheet against the applicant has been filed on 12.03.2025 and as such there is no likelihood of the applicant tampering with the prosecution witness. The main accused Anil Vishwakarma has already been granted bail vide order dated 03.04.2025 passed in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 37935 of 2024 and the applicant is also entitled to be released on bail. I have heard the learned counsels for the parties and have perused the records. Prima facie, the complicity of the applicant in the offence alleged is established. The applicant and his close relatives are the beneficiaries of the crime as unaccounted money has been transferred into the bank account of the applicant and his family members. It is a settled law that while granting bail, the court has to keep in mind the nature of accusation, the nature of the evidence in support thereof, the severity of the punishment which conviction will entail, the character of the accused, the circumstances which are peculiar to the accused, his role and involvement in the offence, his involvement in other cases and reasonable apprehension of the witnesses being tampered with. This Court finds that in India, the rapid advancement of technology and the widespread adoption of digital infrastructure have led to a significant rise in cyber-crimes including phishing scams, ransomware attacks, cyber-stalking and data breaches. Initiatives like Digital India have accelerated the country's' digital transformation, but they have also exposed vulnerabilities that cyber-criminals exploit. Cyber-crime has been affecting the people across the nation, irrespective of religion, region, education or class. Newspapers, Magazines, You Tube Channels and Social Media are brimming with ordeals of an uncountable number of innocent victim of the cyber-crime, who are defrauded of their hard earned money. Such cyber-crimes are rampant in our society, and must be curbed. Cyber-crime in our country is like a silent virus stealthy, disruptive, and costing society more than just money, but trust, security and progress. In view of the above, the Court is not inclined to release the applicant on bail. The bail application is, accordingly, rejected. Order Date :- 20.5.2025 Anjali Digitally signed by :- ANJALI SHARMA High Court of Judicature at Allahabad