NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police have asked CPI (M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas to provide evidence to support his letter to the Union Home Minister, in which he sought a probe into cyberattacks against Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and his family following the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor.
On May 12, Brittas wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking an immediate inquiry into the cyberattacks on Misri and the bereaved families of the Pahalgam terror attack victims. In his letter, he also demanded strict action against the perpetrators and protection for public officials and citizens.
According to the MP’s office, they received a call last week from Delhi Police ACP Dharmender Kumar seeking evidence to corroborate his complaint.
In a written response to the Delhi Police, Brittas said he has submitted screenshots, web links, and press reports evidencing the cyberattacks against Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and his family, and the targeted campaigns of cyber hate and abuse against the bereaved kin of the Pahalgam terror attack victims, Himanshi Narwal, widow of the martyred Lt. Vinay Narwal, and Arathi, daughter of slain tourist N. Ramachandran.
“The Police cannot abdicate their duty by shifting the burden of proving a cognizable offence onto the complainant at the threshold stage,” said the MP.
“To insist that corroborating evidence must be furnished by the complainants themselves is contrary to the very spirit of Section 173 BNSS,” he added.
Brittas further said that the enclosed records are admissible as evidence under the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023.
The MP also demanded that based on the evidence, an FIR be registered without delay and a thorough investigation commenced, including digital forensics to trace the perpetrators and their networks to hold the perpetrators accountable.
Urging the Police to act promptly to preserve social media evidence before it is tampered with or deleted, Brittas pointed out that any refusal to register a case despite receipt of credible information would be contrary to Section 173 BNSS.
“These materials, drawn from abusive social media posts as well as mainstream media coverage, provide sufficient prima facie material to disclose the commission of cognizable offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and the Information Technology Act, 2000,” he said.
Brittas further pointed out that under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, the police are duty-bound to register an FIR and commence investigation after the information relating to a cognizable offence is received.
The doctrine of Zero FIR, now part of criminal procedure, further removes any technical objection as to jurisdiction, he said.
“It may also be noted that under Section 173 of the BNSS 2023, every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offence can be given by any person, irrespective of the area where the offence is committed, to the officer in charge of a police station, either orally, in writing, or by electronic communication.
“The BNSS does not restrict such reporting only to the direct victim of the offence. Once such information is received, it is obligatory for the police to reduce it into writing, enter it in the prescribed register, and act upon it,” he said.