Man held for circulating girlfriend's objectionable photos on social media

Chaibasa (Jharkhand), Dec 9 (PTI) The police arrested a 39-year-old man in Bihar's Aurangabad district for allegedly circulating objectionable photos of a woman, after their marriage proposal was called off over a hefty dowry demand, an officer said on Tuesday.

The woman, a resident of Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district, lodged a police complaint accusing the man of spreading those pictures he gathered from their intimate video calls during the courtship period.

The officer said that the two had met at a wedding several years ago and chatted on various other social media platforms since the Covid lockdown period, said Sub-Divisional Police Officer (Jagannathpur) Rapheal Murmu.

The accused had promised to marry her but refused in 2023 when the victim's family expressed inability to meet the demand for dowry, he said.

The man later demanded Rs five lakh, threatening to upload the objectionable photos on social media. When she failed to cough up the money, he circulated the photos, the police officer said.

The victim lodged a complaint against the accused on December 4 with Jagannathpur police station.

The police conducted a raid in the accused's home town based on evidence gathered with the help of the technical cell and arrested him on Monday, the SDPO said.

The police also seized the smartphone of the accused, containing the objectionable photographs and videos.

In the meantime, the accused had married another woman without the knowledge of the victim.

The brother of the accused, who was charged with being an accomplice of the blackmailer, is absconding. PTI BS NN