Police arrested Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) leader Arnico Pandey on 27 August on charges of character assassination of a woman through social media (WhatsApp and email). Police report that a woman had filed a complaint at the Cyber Bureau, Bhotahiti, on 29 July, alleging that Pandey had used indecent words against her on social media. The bureau formally registered the case on 21 August. The District Court issued an arrest warrant against Pandey on 21 August.
The accused appeared at the Cyber Bureau on his own on 27 August. Following this, the Bureau submitted the investigation report to the District Government Attorney’s Office on 28 August. On the same day, the District Court granted permission to keep the accused in custody for four days, according to Cyber Bureau spokesperson SP Deepakraj Awasthi. The accused Pandey is also a former member of the National Planning Commission.