Indian court grants bail to two men who made apps to auction Muslim women

An Indian court in Delhi granted bail to the creators of ‘Sulli Deals’, Omkareshwar Thakur and ‘Bulli Bai’, Niraj Bishnoi, on humanitarian grounds on Monday. Both applications, Sulli Deals and Bulli Bai were created to humiliate and mock Muslim girls by uploading their photos and putting them up “for sale” on the applications.

According to the court, the accused were released as they committed the offence for the first time and it is not appropriate for their well-being to imprison them for a longer time.

However, the court also imposed strict conditions on both of them, so that they are not able to threaten victims and tamper with evidence.

Under the conditions, the accused are not allowed to contact or influence any victim. The accused will be responsible for always keeping their mobile phones turned on and providing locations to police. They also cannot travel abroad and have to appear before the court on every date. They must not commit a similar crime during the duration of their bail.

Earlier this year, Delhi Police arrested Omkareshwar Thakur and Niraj Bishnoi.

The two application developers uploaded more than 100 photos of Muslim women for sale without their consent. The Pakistani Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Malala Yousafzai, was also included in the auction list uploaded by ‘Bulli Bai’. In both applications, there was no actual sale but the sole purpose was to defame Muslim women.