Karan Oberoi rape case: Mumbai court upholds legal proceedings against Pooja Bedi and other celebrities

A significant development has happened in the 2019 Karan Oberoi rape case. Reports have surfaced that a Mumbai sessions court has refused to stay the legal proceedings against actress Pooja Bedi and seven others in a case linked to the alleged disclosure of a rape survivor’s identity. Initiated by the Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Andheri, the proceedings were against a group of celebrities, including Anveshi Jain, Chaitanya Bhosle, Varkay Patani, Gurbani Oberoi, Sherrin Verghase, actor Sudhanshu Pandey, and advocate Dinesh Tiwari, alongside Pooja Bedi.
The accused allegedly revealed sensitive information during a press conference held shortly after the complaint was filed, an act that could potentially amount to a violation of Section 228A of the Indian Penal Code. This section explicitly prohibits the public identification of rape survivors to safeguard their privacy and dignity.
According to Free Press Journal report, the court, after reviewing the matter stated, “Even if one or more individuals took the name of the victim involved in the rape case, all will be held liable as per the complainant’s allegations of common intention among the applicants to commit the offense. The applicants’ argument that there was no mens rea to disclose the identity of the victim and the allegations are general are defenses that can be addressed during the trial.”

“There is sufficient material against the group to suggest that, in furtherance of common intention, they disclosed the identity of the victim/complainant in connection with a sexual offense, violating Section 228A IPC (disclosure of identity of the victim of certain offenses), which prohibits the publication or disclosure of the identity of a victim of a sexual offense,” stated the report.
How did it all begin?
According to the police investigation, the said press conference was held at Pooja Bedi’s residence on May 5, 2019. In the conference, members of the group allegedly revealed details, including the name and other sensitive personal information of the complainant, which allegedly breached the laws set to protect sexual assault survivors.
Reportedly, as per the information provided by the cops, the video of the press conference was widely circulated and, to date, is accessible across multiple platforms. Thus, Metropolitan Magistrate Court, on February 26, 2021, ordered the initiation of proceedings against the group
In April 2022, the accused group approached the sessions court, arguing that there was no shared intention (common intention) or mens rea (guilty mind) involved in the alleged act. In their defense, not all individuals named in the complaint had directly disclosed the complainant’s details.