Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh – A 57-year-old doctor in Varanasi became the victim of a terrible extortion ordeal when a meeting organized through a gay dating app degenerated into blackmail, prompting him to pay a large sum of ₹8 lakh. The accused is said to have taken nude pictures of the doctor, threatened to leak them, and then run away. Police have filed a report and are actively looking for the culprit, who is known as Vikas.
Last Sunday, the event happened. The doctor, who was in Varanasi for work, met Vikas through a gay dating app. After they first talked, the doctor is said to have given Vikas his phone number and the address of his hotel room, and he even asked Vikas to bring beer bottles with him.
The police report says that Vikas got at the hotel about 10 p.m. with appetizers and alcohol. Things got bad after they had been in the room together for a while. Vikas is said to have approached the doctor and said, “You shouldn’t be doing things like this at your age.” “Don’t do all this; you’re in Shiv Nagri.”
After this fight, Vikas is said to have taken naked pictures of the doctor. The complaint goes on to say that Vikas then hit the doctor many times, including slapping him. When Vikas allegedly shattered a glass, pointed it at the doctor, and said he would expose the embarrassing photos if he wasn’t compensated, things became worse. To further terrify the victim, Vikas further claimed to have influential political connections and affiliations with anti-social forces who may arrange for the doctor to be murdered.
The doctor gave in to the requests because he was scared of the threats. According to reports, he used UPI transactions and an ATM to get cash, giving Vikas a total of ₹8 lakh that night and the next morning. After getting the money, the accused is said to have run away from the scene.
Ishant Soni, the Assistant Commissioner of Police, said that the doctor had been blackmailed by a man he met on a homosexual dating app. The officer said, “We have filed a case and will take action.” Section 308 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) deals with several types of extortion, and the First Information Report (FIR) has been filed under this section.
In July 2024, the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Section 308 of the BNS says that extortion is when someone puts someone else in fear of harm (to themselves or others) in order to get them to give up property or important security. The punishment can be different depending on the type of threat, such as fear of death, serious injury, or being accused of a serious crime. It can include jail time of up to 10 years and penalties.
The police are currently using the hotel’s CCTV video and looking at the money transfers made through UPI and other means to find the suspect. Authorities are working quickly to catch Vikas, and a manhunt has begun.