Mumbai: RTI exposes how cops lied about cracking cyber-bullying case

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Nearly a month after mid-day reported how the Mumbai police had botched the investigation of a cyber bullying case, the victim has revealed more shocking details through an RTI query, which has exposed the cyber police's lie about cracking the case.

When she pointed this out to the police, they told her not to file any more RTIs.

Background
In November last year, Alka Dixit (named changed to protect identity), who was previously victim to a sexual harassment case, became the target of another form of harassment, after someone hacked into her Gmail and Facebook account. mid-day had reported how she got fed up of the slow pace of investigation and was shocked when she did a little digging on her own. She discovered that Cyber Cell had told the media that they had zeroed in on a suspect from Bikaner - Mohit Kumar Marothi. But when Alka approached the police to find out more about the case, she was told that even though she was the complainant, she had no right to seek information on the accused (‘Cyber bullying case: Is my fight against the criminal or the State?', August 12).

As the cyber cops were unwilling to share information with her, the victim decided to take matters into her own hand. She sent an RTI query to the Nokha police in Bikaner - where according to the Mumbai police, the panchnama was allegedly filed. The Nokha Police responded to her RTI application on September 5, confirming that no such panchnama had been filed.

RTI response
In fact, the Nokha Police's response to the RTI query has opened up a can of worms, exposing how Mumbai Police had been lying all along. In the response (mid-day has a copy), Alka asked: ‘If panchnama was done in presence of Nokha Police of the digital evidence and mobile handset recovered or at Nokha police station, then please provide name of the witness/ panchas to the panchnama?' To this, Nokha Police responded: ‘Nokha Police has not recovered any device and information should be taken from Mumbai Cyber Police.'

Further, Alka also referred to a news report in which the Mumbai cops had claimed that they had to face a riot when they went to arrest the accused in Bikaner. They had also alleged that a local cop had discouraged them from doing their duty. However, Nokha Police responded: ‘As informed earlier, there was no mob or riot like situation, or any law and order problem, and no IPS officer has obstructed the investigation work of Mumbai Police. Further, Mumbai Police has never intimated or communicated to Nokha PS of any such adverse incident during their visit of March 12, 2016.'

‘Just eyewash'
On Saturday, when Alka met the new Investigating Officer assigned to her case, she was told to stop sending RTIs to the Nokha police and was assured that the case would be probed afresh, indicating that the Mumbai police are aware of the goof-up. "The officers told me not to dig into the past and that they are probing the case again," said Alka. However, she pointed out that she has already spent nine months waiting for the cyber police to solve the case, and now the department was starting the probe from scratch. "This means the entire investigation till now was just eyewash," she said, adding that she is still in the dark about the identity of the accused and how far the cops had progressed on the case.

Cop speak
When this reporter contacted Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cyber Cell) Sachin Patil, he said, "At this stage, we won't be able to share any information, as the matter is being investigated. And as far as RTI response from Nokha police, I cannot comment on the same.