Bombay HC Acquits BrahMos Engineer of Espionage Charges After 7 Years, Flags Social Media Lapse

The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court has set aside the life imprisonment awarded to former BrahMos Aerospace Senior System Engineer Nishant Agarwal, who was earlier convicted for allegedly leaking classified missile information to suspected Pakistani intelligence operatives running fake Facebook profiles.

A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kilor and Pravin Patil held that the prosecution failed to establish any intention or knowledge on Agarwal’s part to compromise national security.

The Court observed that simply accepting Facebook requests from profiles named Neha Sharma and Pooja Ranjan, allegedly operated from Pakistan, or responding to a job-related message from another LinkedIn account under the name Sejal Kapoor, did not constitute an act prejudicial to the interests of the State.

“The prosecution has failed to prove the circumstances or the conduct of the accused or his known character to show purpose prejudicial to the safety or interest of the State,” the Bench noted, adding that no material showed any attempt on his part to knowingly share restricted or classified information.

The Court also referred to Agarwal’s service record, noting that he consistently received “very good” and “outstanding” performance ratings, was promoted to Senior System Engineer and was conferred the Young Scientist Award. This, the Bench said, indicated the absence of any malicious intent or suspicious conduct.

The prosecution claimed Agarwal had copied classified material and downloaded malware sent by the fake social media accounts.

However, the Court found that the only established fact was that he accepted friend requests from the two Facebook profiles and held job-related conversations with the third profile on LinkedIn regarding a position in the United Kingdom. The Bench further observed that there was no prohibition on the use of social media or seeking employment opportunities elsewhere.

Clarifying the scope of Section 3(2) of the Official Secrets Act, the Court held that the statutory presumption of prejudice to national security arises only when the prosecution first proves intent and knowledge. A person’s conduct and character must be established “before presuming that the act was against the interests of the country,” the Court held, noting that there was no adverse input from the Intelligence Bureau or any other security agency.

While acquitting him of charges under Section 66F of the Information Technology Act and Sections 3(1)(c), 5(1)(a), (b), (c), and 5(3) of the Official Secrets Act, the Court upheld his conviction under Section 5(1)(d) of the OSAfor failing to take reasonable care of information in his possession.

The Bench maintained only the three-year sentence relating to this offence and quashed the remaining convictions, including the fourteen-year sentence under the Information Technology Act for cyber terrorism.

“The conviction and sentence imposed for offences under Section 66F of the I.T. Act and under Section 3(1)(c), 5(1)(a),(b),(c) and 5(3) of the Official Secrets Act are set aside. The conviction only under Section 5(1)(d) of the Official Secrets Act is maintained,” the judgment said.

Speaking after the verdict, Agarwal said,” Finally, justice was delivered. The jail administration was fair. There is nothing to complain about.”

Case Title: Nishant S/o Pradeep Agrawal v. Anti-Terrorist Squad, Lucknow through Investigating Officer, State of Uttar Pradesh & Anr.

Bench: Justice Anil S Kilor and Justice Pravin S Patil

Order Date: 1 December 2025