Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC:60812 Court No. - 68 Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. BAIL APPLICATION No. - 640 of 2025 Applicant :- Narendra Kumar Opposite Party :- State of U.P. Counsel for Applicant :- Kuldeep Maurya,Vinod Kumar Singh Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A. Hon'ble Ashutosh Srivastava,J. Heard learned counsel for the applicant, Sri Anil Kumar Singh, learned AGA for the State Respondent and perused the record. The present bail application has been filed on behalf of applicant with a prayer to release him on bail in Case Crime No. 19 of 2024 for offence punishable under Sections 318(4), 338, 336(3), 340(2) of the B.N.S. and Section 66-D of the Information Technology Act, registered at Police Station Cyber Crime, District Hathras, during pendency of the trial, after rejection of his bail application by Sessions Judge, Hathras vide order dated 17.12.2024. Brief facts of the case are that the FIR was lodged on 19.11.2024 against co-accused Jagriti Verma, Suraj and Mohit mentioning their mobile numbers. According to the FIR the co-accused, while claiming to be working in Aradhya Financial Pvt. Ltd. told the informant to be appointed him to the post of Area Sales Officer and gave him appointment letter and ID Card etc. in the name of Aradhya Finance. The prosecution story is that the accused- applicant received Rs. 61743/- in the form of file charge and processing fee through UPI in various accounts. On 23.11.2024, on the information received from the informer, the Police arrested the applicant and co-accused Ram Kumar. One HP Laptop and Two Mobile Phones of Vivo Company with charger was recovered from the possession of the applicant's bag Narendra Kumar. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the present case with ulterior motive. Learned counsel for the applicant further submits that the FIR has been registered after the delay of three months of which no satisfactory explanation has been submitted. It is further submitted that the applicant is not named in the FIR and his name was surfaced during the course of investigation. It is further submitted that the Account in which the aforesaid transactions have been made is not in the name of the applicant as such, the applicant has no connection in this crime. He submits that the applicant has not received any penny from the alleged transaction and is not a beneficiary thereof. The mobile number which was used for the aforesaid transaction is not in the name of the applicant. He submits that only the IEMI Number of Mobile Set of the accused applicant has been used for the aforesaid transaction but the SIM Number, which has been used for the aforesaid transaction does not belong to the applicant. He has next argued that the applicant has no previous criminal history and on the basis of confessional statement, one case is registered against the applicant and if the applicant is released on bail, he shall not misuse the liberty of bail. He is languishing in jail since 24.11.2024. Per contra, learned A.G.A. has supported the order passed by the Sessions Court and vehemently opposed the prayer for grant of bail to the applicant and submits that the allegations involved are very serious in nature and the delay in lodging the F.I.R. cannot be said to be fatal to the case at this juncture while considering the application of bail. But he could not point out any material to the contrary. He, however, submits that in case the applicant is released on bail, he will again indulge in similar activities and will misuse the liberty of bail. 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 :- 22.4.2025 pks Digitally signed by :- PAWAN KUMAR SINGH High Court of Judicature at Allahabad Digitally signed by :- PAWAN KUMAR SINGH High Court of Judicature at Allahabad