A Delhi court on Wednesday denied anticipatory bail to a man accused of impersonating his brother-in-law and falsely confessing to the assassination of an American political activist before US law enforcement agencies, observing that the alleged acts amounted to a sophisticated and vindictive cybercrime with international ramifications.
Event Context
Additional sessions judge Hargurvarinder Singh Jaggi of Saket courts rejected the anticipatory bail plea of Michael Ashish Mukherjee, holding that custodial interrogation was necessary to recover digital evidence allegedly used in the commission of the offence.
The case stems from an FIR registered on May 5 at Safdarjung police station on the complaint of Prateek Paul, a PhD scholar at Columbia University in New York.
Investigators further alleged that Mukherjee filed false complaints against his wife before Qatar immigration authorities and against his mother-in-law before the Income Tax Department, accusing her of a ₹5-crore tax fraud.
Police told the court that despite being served a notice to join the investigation, the accused failed to cooperate.
Seeking anticipatory bail, Mukherjee argued that the criminal case was an extension of a family dispute and that his arrest would disrupt his medical treatment while causing hardship to his dependent parents in Prayagraj.
Rejecting the plea, the court held that the allegations went well beyond an ordinary matrimonial dispute.
“The allegations transcend standard domestic friction and involve a highly sophisticated, vindictive and perilous cybercrime with international ramifications,” the court observed.
It further noted that impersonating another person and sending fabricated assassination confessions to foreign federal agencies created “actual and imminent danger” for the complainant.
Match Outlook
The court said custodial interrogation was essential because investigators were yet to recover the electronic devices allegedly used to transmit the fake emails and that granting anticipatory bail could result in the destruction of crucial digital evidence.
The court also noted that he had concealed from the court that the Delhi High Court had issued non-bailable warrants against him in May after holding him guilty of contempt of court.
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According to the prosecution, the dispute arose from a matrimonial conflict between Mukherjee and Paul’s sister, who had initiated divorce proceedings against him on grounds of cruelty and adultery. Police alleged that, in retaliation, Mukherjee orchestrated a campaign of “cyber harassment, extortion and criminal intimidation” targeting his brother-in-law.
Investigators alleged that Mukherjee created multiple fake email accounts impersonating Paul and sent fabricated emails to several US authorities, including the FBI, Department of Justice, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
In those emails, police alleged, Mukherjee falsely confessed on Paul’s behalf to assassinating American political activist Charlie Kirk, attaching Paul’s passport, visa and New York identification documents to make the claims appear genuine. According to the FIR, the emails prompted US federal authorities to visit Paul’s residence in October last year.
Police have booked Mukherjee under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to defamation and cheating by personation, along with relevant sections of the Information Technology Act.
