Xx v. Union Of India Through Secretary Of Ministry Of Electronics And Information Technology & ORS.

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

+ W.P.(CRL) 642/2026 & CRL.M.A. 5994/2026 XX .....Petitioner Through:

Mr. Pawan Kumar Bansal and Mr.Ahsan Ul Haq, Advocates.

Versus

UNION OF INDIA THROUGH SECRETARY OF MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY & ORS.

.....Respondents Through:

Ms.

Manisha Agrawal Narain, CGSC with Ms. Aditi Singh and Mr. Nipun Jain, Advocates for R-1.

Mr. Sanjeev Bhandari, ASC with Mr. Arjit Sharma and Ms. Sakshi Jha, Advocates for State with SI Prinsh Sharma, PS- Cyber South East Delhi.

Ms. Amee Rana, Ms. Sana Banyal and Ms. Nitya Nath, Advocates for R-3.

CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE PRATEEK JALAN

O R D E R

% 23.02.2026 1.

The petitioner has filed the present writ petition in relation to derogatory messages and obscene images, allegedly created using an edited image of the petitioner's face, which were purportedly uploaded on certain Instagram accounts.

2.

The petitioner seeks the following reliefs in the petition: The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.

"A. To issue a Writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate Writ against the Respondents directing them to remove the derogatory contents, defamatory messages, unclothed images of a female misusing the edited face of the Petitioner uploaded by an unknown person on the fake instagram accounts (1) ----, created in December 2016, (2)---, created in June 2018, (3) ---, created in 2020, (4) ---, created in September 2020, (5) ---, created in December 2024, (6) ---, created in December 2024 and (7) ---, created in May 2025.

B. To issue a Writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate Writ directing the Respondent No. 2 to register the First Information report against the unknown person qua the complaint registered vide Daily Diary (DD) Entry No. 10A dated 22.09.2025. C. Pass any other order or orders against the Respondents and in favour of the Petitioner in the interest of justice. D. Issue rule nisi."

3.

Insofar as prayer (A) is concerned, Ms. Amee Rana, learned counsel for respondent No. 3 - Meta Platforms, Inc., appearing on advance notice, submits that the petitioner may approach the Grievance Officer appointed under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. 4.

Mr. Pawan Kumar Bansal, learned counsel for the petitioner, submits that several grievances have already been raised. Ms. Rana assures the Court that she will coordinate with Mr. Bansal to ensure that any pending grievances are addressed, following which necessary action shall be taken in accordance with law.

5.

As regards prayer (B), Mr. Bansal does not press the same in this petition, without prejudice to the rights and remedies available to the petitioner in accordance with law, including the right to file an application under Section 175(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.

6.

As no further directions are sought, the writ petition, alongwith the The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.

pending application, stands disposed of, in accordance with the above submissions.

PRATEEK JALAN, J FEBRUARY 23, 2026/'Sh'/SD/ The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.