The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court upholding the life sentence awarded by a trial court in Nagercoil to T. Kasi alias Suji, who sexually exploited and extorted money from women to the tune of several lakhs of rupees, appealed particularly to young persons and their families to exercise utmost caution while entering into online or technologically facilitated relationships.A Division Bench of Justices N. Anand Venkatesh and K.K. Ramakrishnan said the exponential growth of digital communication and the use of social media has undoubtedly enriched human interaction. However, it has also created opportunities for exploitation through deception, emotional manipulation, coercion, non-consensual recording of intimate images, and threats of their dissemination. Awareness, vigilance and timely reporting of such offences are indispensable to prevent victimisation.The court said the appeal was made not only in the interest of women, who are often disproportionately targeted by such crimes, but equally in the interest of all members of society who may become victims of technology-enabled sexual exploitation.The court said the case presents a classic illustration of rape by deception, rape by fraud, sexual extortion, and what was commonly described as ‘romance fraud’. The case is a glaring instance of a calculated romantic fraud culminating in rape, where the accused weaponised the victim’s trust, emotional vulnerability, and economic necessity to facilitate sexual exploitation.The court said it considers it appropriate to make a humble but earnest appeal to all young girls and women. No matter how deep the affection, trust, or promise of confidentiality may appear, intimate photographs or videos should never be shared with anyone through electronic means. Once such material leaves one’s exclusive control, it can easily be misused, leading to irreversible consequences for the victim’s privacy, dignity, and mental well-being. Prevention is always better than the arduous process of seeking legal redress after such trust has been betrayed.The court said therefore it respectfully urges every young girl and woman to exercise utmost caution in safeguarding their privacy and dignity in the digital world. A moment of misplaced trust should never become a lifetime of suffering.Justice N. Anand Venkatesh in a postscript to the judgment authored by Justice K.K. Ramakrishnan said “we are entering a new era where these types of digital crimes are rapidly increasing. The law has built strict checks and balances under the Evidence Act to make sure digital files are not manipulated. But the law has completely ignored how these same digital files manipulate and harm the human minds required to judge them.”The machinery of justice cannot treat its human beings like unfeeling computers. If we continue to ignore the mental and neurological toll of this digital age, we will end up with burnt-out, traumatized, and emotionally numbed investigators, lawyers, and judges, the judge said.He added it is time for judiciary and institutional leaders to confront this challenge candidly. We must build institutional responses that protect those who carry the system through mandatory psychological screening, regular counselling, decompression protocols after exposure, rotation of personnel assigned to graphic material, training to recognise and respond to vicarious trauma, and secure facilities and procedures to minimise unnecessary exposure. Such measures are not luxuries but they are essential to the integrity and sustainability of a justice system that still depends on human judgment.The law must continue to refine the technical rules for digital evidence. It must also, with equal seriousness, safeguard the minds entrusted to apply it, the judge said.Considering the wider public importance of the issues involved, the court delivered a portion of the judgment in English, Tamil and Hindi. Owing to the paucity of time, the court said it was unable to exercise translation in all regional languages of the country and expressed regret. Published - July 14, 2026 09:58 pm IST