HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court has directed Shaadi.com director Anupam Mittal, team leader Vignesh, and manager Satish to face trial in connection with an online cheating case involving a fake matrimonial profile. The court also issued notices under BNSS Section 35(3) and instructed the police to carry out a thorough investigation.
The case stems from a complaint filed by a woman doctor from Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad. Police stated that Cherukuri Harsha, a resident of Rajahmundry, reportedly created a fake profile on Shaadi.com using the photograph of an MLA from Yanam, Andhra Pradesh.
Posing as a prospective groom, Harsha claimed his mother was a doctor living in the United States. Over time, he allegedly extorted Rs 11 lakh from the complainant under false pretenses. When she demanded the money back, Harsha reportedly threatened to morph and circulate her photos online, while also demanding an additional Rs 10 lakh.
The woman filed a complaint with the Jubilee Hills police on February 25. During the investigation, officers booked Harsha and also named Mittal, Vignesh and Satish as co-accused, citing failures in user verification and platform oversight. Police also suspect that Harsha defrauded others using similar tactics.
The Shaadi.com officials filed petitions in the high court seeking to quash the FIR. During the hearing, Justice N Tukaramji reviewed arguments from both sides.
Advocate Ashok Reddy, representing the petitioners, argued that Shaadi.com is merely a platform for user-generated content and is not responsible for verifying profile authenticity. “It is not within the website’s purview to confirm the accuracy of user-submitted data,” he said.
However, Additional Public Prosecutor Jitender Veeramalla countered that platform administrators cannot evade accountability when fraudulent activities occur under their watch.
After hearing the arguments, the court dismissed the plea to quash the FIR and directed the accused to face trial.
Cybercops expose verification lapses in matrimony portal
Following the arrest of Jogada Vamshi Krishna on March 15 for allegedly running a large-scale online matrimonial scam via a fake profile on Shaadi.com, the Hyderabad Cyber Crime police have uncovered serious lapses in the platform’s user verification process. Despite promoting its premium “Select Shaadi” service as offering “verified” profiles, investigators found that no actual documentation had been authenticated.
Investigators found that a platform-assigned relationship manager introduced the victim to the accused without conducting background checks. Senior Shaadi.com officials — director Anupam Mittal, team lead Vignesh and manager Satish — have also been named in the case for allegedly enabling the transmission of unverified data, facilitating fraudulent interactions, and ignoring user complaints.
Under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, intermediaries like Shaadi.com are obligated to verify users, act swiftly on unlawful content, appoint grievance officers, and offer robust complaint redressal systems. Police say the platform’s failure to meet these obligations disqualifies it from “safe harbour” protections under Section 79(1) of the IT Act, 2000.