Gujarat High Court
Rimple Gupta D/O Om Prakash Gupta W/O ... vs State Of Gujarat on 17 April, 2023
Author: Gita Gopi
Bench: Gita Gopi
R/CR.RA/1263/2022 ORDER DATED: 17/04/2023
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL REVISION APPLICATION NO. 1263 of 2022
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RIMPLE GUPTA D/O OM PRAKASH GUPTA W/O HARISH SHYMALAL
GUPTA
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT
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Appearance:
MR IMRAN H PATHAN(3478) for the Applicant(s) No. 1,2,3
MR PRANAV TRIVEDI, APP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
MR OMKARNATH RAMKISHORE TIWARI with MR MOHIT DARJI for the
Respondent(s) No. 2
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MS. JUSTICE GITA GOPI
Date : 17/04/2023
ORAL ORDER
1. Learned advocate Mr. Omkarnath Ramkishore Tiwari has filed a Vakalatnama on behalf of respondent no.2 along with the affidavit. Let the same be taken on record and his name be reflected as learned advocate appearing for the respondent no.2.
2. The applicants are wife, son and daughter of the respondent no.2 and they have come before this Court impugning the order dated 21.6.2022 passed by the learned Principal Page 1 of 10 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 18 20:51:55 IST 2023 R/CR.RA/1263/2022 ORDER DATED: 17/04/2023 Judge, Family Court, Bharuch stating that the proceedings be conducted in camera, the pen drive and the certificate Mark 19/1 and 19/2 has been produced under Section 65B of the Indian Evidence Act and she states that pen drive should not be given to the respondent no.2 outside the Court room. It is stated that the respondent no.2 was having illicit relations with different women prior to marriage and even the said illicit activities continued after marriage and the applicant no.1 found her husband in a compromising position with different women when she searched his mobile phone, she immediately copied the data in her pen drive from the memory card of the mobile phone. It is stated that the pen drive contains indecent video clips of the husband with different women and she has proved the certificate under Section 65B of the Indian Page 2 of 10 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 18 20:51:55 IST 2023 R/CR.RA/1263/2022 ORDER DATED: 17/04/2023 Evidence Act in her chief examination. The applicant no.1 has raised an apprehension that if the respondent no.2 is given the pen drive, then there is a strong apprehension that the video clips would be publicized and the innocent women would be defamed in the society and there is also a possibility that the respondent no.2 would blackmail the said innocent women by giving a threat to make videos viral in the society and thus, have made a prayer that the proceedings be conducted only in camera.
3. Advocate Mr. Tiwari, relying upon the affidavit of the respondent no.2, stated that since 26.5.2020 during the period of lock down, the applicant no.1 has returned back to her parental house along with her children and thereafter, she refused to return back to her matrimonial home despite several efforts made by the respondent no.2 Page 3 of 10 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 18 20:51:55 IST 2023 R/CR.RA/1263/2022 ORDER DATED: 17/04/2023 and his family members and after reaching her parental house, initially she lodged a complaint with Mahila Police Station, Bharuch and made various false, frivolous and baseless allegation against the respondent no.2, that the respondent no.2 is having illicit affairs with other ladies and she alleges that applicant no.1 has stolen three memory cards from the mobile phone of the respondent no.2 which allegedly contains various objectionable pictures and videos of the respondent no.2 with other women and on the basis of the same, FIR was registered against the respondent no.2 and his family members under Section 498A of the IPC. It is stated that the learned Trial Court Judge has given a well reasoned order in accordance with law and the same does not require any interference of this Court. Page 4 of 10 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 18 20:51:55 IST 2023 R/CR.RA/1263/2022 ORDER DATED: 17/04/2023
4. Advocate Mr. Tiwari submitted that the applicant had stolen 3 memory cards from the mobile phone of the respondent no.2 and she has copied the same in various CDs and pen drives and she has circulated the material in CD and pen drive to her advocate, Mahila Police Station and the original memory card is sent to forensic expert for opinion and till date, no report is received from the authority.
5. It is stated that it is the fundamental right of the respondent no.2 under Article 21 read with Section 207 read with Section 238 of the Cr.P.C. to have copy of the pen drive to ascertain genuineness of the contents of the same before proceeding to cross-examine the applicant and is also necessary to ascertain whether any fabrication is done by the applicant to defame the respondent. The reason given by Page 5 of 10 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 18 20:51:55 IST 2023 R/CR.RA/1263/2022 ORDER DATED: 17/04/2023 the applicant for avoiding to supply copy of pen drive to the respondent no.2 is with false assumption that the respondent no.2 will publicize the said video clips and the innocent women would be defamed in the society or the respondent no.2 will blackmail the said innocent women by giving threats to make videos viral in the society. It is stated that the pen drive is allegedly made from the memory card of the respondent no.2's phone, if so then, the respondent no.2 had never attempted or have done any such act. It is alleged that the brother of the applicant is IT Engineer and thus, he has made false and bogus video clips connecting the respondent no.2 with other women and stated that conducting the trial in camera, the respondent no.2 does not have any objection.
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6. The Family Court has ordered the applicant to give a copy of Mark 19/1 and 19/2 to the respondent no.2. It is required to be noted that since the electronic evidence along with the certificate under Section 65B has been produced in the Court, it would be in in the interest of justice and fitness of the matter that the copy be given by the Court to the respondent no.2 since any copy provided by the applicants would be vulnerable to allegation since the respondent no.2 himself has raised an apprehension that the brother of the applicant is I.T. Engineer. Further, the pen drive contains objectionable videos and pictures so if evidence is recorded in the open Court would certainly be affecting the rival parties and further, the apprehension is also raised by the applicant that it may affect other ladies.
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7. Section 14 of the Family Courts Act, 1984 lays down that a Family Court may receive as evidence any report, statement, documents, information or matter that may, in its opinion, assist it to deal effectually with a dispute, whether or not the same would be otherwise relevant or admissible under the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. However, when the matter becomes very sensitive and affects the rival parties and even affects the reputation of any of the third party concerned, it would be in the interest of justice that the proceedings may be held in camera in accordance to Section 11 of the Family Courts Act, 1984. Section 11 of the said Act reads as under:-
"11. Proceedings to be held in camera:- In every suit or proceedings to which this Act applies, the proceedings may be held in camera if the Family Court so desires and shall be so held if either party so desires."Page 8 of 10 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 18 20:51:55 IST 2023
R/CR.RA/1263/2022 ORDER DATED: 17/04/2023
8. Here the apprehension has been raised by the applicant that the videos and photographs as reflected in the pen drive may be misused and may affect and damage the reputation of others, therefore, it would be necessary that the proceedings be held in camera. Hence, it is directed to the learned Trial Court Judge, Bharuch that the matter between the parties be conducted in camera. Further, a copy of the pen drive and the certificate Mark 19/1 and 19/2 be provided by the Court to avoid any allegation of misuse and manipulation ensuring that the hash value does not change.
9. The learned Trial Court Judge has to ensure that if the documents in the form of electronic evidence if found very sensitive, then, necessary orders be passed for its safety.
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10. Accordingly, the present application stands disposed of.
(GITA GOPI,J) Maulik Page 10 of 10 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 18 20:51:55 IST 2023