'Who Is Safe?' Karnataka High Court Refuses To Quash FIR Against Man Accused Of Taking Woman's Photos Inside Trial Room

The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday (January 27) refused to entertain a plea for quashing an FIR lodged against a man accused of clicking photographs of a woman while she was in the trial room of a clothing shop in Bengaluru. 

The petitioner had moved a plea seeking quashing of a 2024 FIR registered by the police for offence of voyeurism under Section 77 BNS. In the interim the petition sought a stay on the investigation. 

At the outset when the matter was called, Justice M Nagaprasanna orally asked the petitioner's counsel, "Where did you keep the phone camera?"

When the counsel said that the petitioner had not kept any phone and that his phone was taken away on the spot, the court orally said:

"What never kept? A woman enters into a trial room and you shoot? How can any cloth store be safe for a woman if you go on shooting through the curtains?...Case is of voyeurism. We will not spare such people...Even if an allegation comes that in the trial room you have kept a camera...no woman is safe...The allegation is by the time she came out to take the phone, you had deleted...I will not entertain such cases at all". 

The court was further told that the chargesheet had been filed in the matter and the petitioner was 19 years old. The court thereafter said, "Face trial...Everything depends on the trial. If all showrooms go on keeping phones in trial room who is safe?...I'm not entertaining. You may get acquitted...". 

After some hearing the petitioner's counsel sought to withdraw the petition to avail remedies as available under law, which was permitted by the court.

The plea was disposed of. 

Case title: SRI FAISAL ULLA SHARIF @ FAISAL ULLA SHARIFF v/s THE STATE OF KARNATAKA AND ANOTHER

CRL.P 865/2026

IA 1/26 FOR STAY