iPhone 7 of BJP member Sowdha Mani essential for investigation, cannot be returned now: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court recently dismissed a petition filed by former news anchor and Tamil Nadu BJP state executive member Sowdha Mani seeking the return of her iPhone 7 that was seized by the Chennai Police, following an allegedly controversial re-tweet by her..In an order passed on September 14, Justice P Velmurugan accepted the submission of the police that the said mobile phone was essential for the purpose of investigation and that it had to be labelled as a "material object" during the course of the trial.The Additional Public Prosecutor also submitted that Sowdha Mani's phone had been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for analysis and the police was yet to receive the lab report. .Sowdha Mani had approached the Madras High Court earlier this month challenging an order passed by the local magistrate court that had held on July 22 that the BJP member could not get her iPhone back yet.Before the High Court, she argued that her phone, which was seized on July 9 this year, contained her bank details and several other important documents that she required on a day to day basis. She also undertook to produce the said phone before the trial court whenever asked to..The High Court, however, held that since the police was yet to receive the forensic report on the seized phone, it was not possible for them to return it to the petitioner yet. The order states,"This Court is of the view that since the subject property is a material evidence and is very much essential for investigation of the case and that, the report of the Forensic Science Laboratory is yet to be received, the order passed by the court below in dismissing the petition filed by the petitioner for return of property, does not call for any interference."Justice Velmurugan, however, noted that while Sowdha Mani's phone had been seized by the cyber crime officials on July 9, it was produced before the jurisdictional magistrate only on July 15. This, despite the fact that the apex court had held several times that any material seized during an investigation must be produced before the court forthwith, and that any delay in production of the same vitiates the entire proceeding. He thus noted,"The delay in producing the same was not explained by the Investigating Officer, which cannot be slightly brushed aside by this court, considering the nature of the offence involved herein," the High Court said.The Court accordingly directed the Director General of Police to take stringent action against the concerned Investigating Officer for the delay.The matter will be heard further on October 26.Advocate RC Paul Kanagaraj appeared for Mani, while Additional Public Prosecutor S Sugendran appeared for the police..Mani, who is currently on bail, was arrested by the crime branch on July 10 this year for re-tweeting a video and text tweeted by another person. The said post had claimed that only Hindu temples were being demolished in Tamil Nadu following court orders for removal of encroachments on public land.After Mani's retweet was flagged allegedly by some members of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party, she was booked under Sections 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riots), 153(1)(b) (circulating rumours to cause alarm among people or to disturb public tranquility) and 505(2) (circulating statements promoting enmity, hatred or ill will between classes) of the Indian Penal Code..[Read order]