Read Time: 05 minutes

Synopsis

Sapna Gill, a social media influencer, has filed a writ petition before the Bombay High Court seeking direction to quash the FIR registered against her on February 17, 2023, at the Oshiwara police station.

The FIR was filed against Gill and others for allegedly assaulting Indian cricketer Prithvi Shaw and his friends outside Hotel Sahara Star in Mumbai's Santacruz.

In her petition, Gill has denied the allegations of assault, abuse, and damage to property made against her by Shaw's friend, who is the complainant in the case. She has alleged that the complainant, on Shaw's instructions, falsely implicated her in the case to fulfill his "personal vendetta" and "harass and trap" her. She has further claimed that Shaw is hand in glove with influential people, and the allegations against her are baseless and vexatious.

"That the Respondent no.2 has approached the police machinery with unclean hands and has levelled baseless and unsubstantiated allegations against the Petitioner by filing a vexatious complaint fraught with lies by misusing laws hand in gloves with influential & powerful people (Mr. Prithvi shaw)." the plea reads.

Gill has also sought direction to the police to not file any chargesheet against her in the case.

Moreover, she has prayed for the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against the investigating officer and senior police inspector of the Oshiwara police station, as well as the police officer from the Airport Road police station, for working "hand in glove" with Shaw and his friends and misusing their authority by invoking "unjustified, serious criminal charges" against her.

The FIR lodged against Gill and others under various Sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including rioting, extortion, and criminal intimidation was subsequently amended to include an additional offence under Section 387 of the IPC after a video recording of the incident surfaced. The added Section pertains to putting a person in fear of death or of grievous hurt to commit extortion and is punishable with imprisonment of up to seven years.

Gill was arrested on February 17, 2023, and was remanded to police custody until February 20, 2023, when she was granted bail by a Mumbai Court.

She has also filed a counter-complaint before the Airport police station alleging that Shaw and his friends had outraged her modesty. She claimed that her statement was recorded in the complaint on February 25, 2023, however, she was later informed that the spot of the incident was outside their jurisdiction, and hence her FIR could not be registered.

The high court will hear the plea filed by Sapna Gill in the coming week.

Case Title: Ms. Sapna Gill vs state of Maharashtra & Ors