‘What is the much detested “Bulli Bai” App?’
Bulli Bai app has been making headlines since past few days.
The Bulli Bai app is an app on open-sourced Github platform which was used to upload the pictures of hundreds of Muslim women, without their prior consent or knowledge, for a virtual auction.
On 1st of January, the Muslim women of India rose to terror when they found their images on the Bulli Bai’s virtual auction.
About 100 Muslim women including prominent voices in journalism, civil society found their images and profiles on the site, which invited bids for auctions on the women.
The app triggered a massive outrage in the nation.
After news of the Bulli Bai app emerged, one woman filed a complaint at the Cyber Police Station in southeast Delhi. She alleged that her photograph had been uploaded by Twitter handle @bullibai_ and others. An FIR was accordingly registered.
Twitter suspended the accounts involved in the case and the controversial app was taken down from GitHub.
Delhi police worked swiftly to get their hands on the culprit considering the heinousness of the act as it outraged the modesty of women and spread the seed of communalism in the nation.
The Delhi police was provided technical support. After receiving support from the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), raw data analysis was conducted and it was found that the main suspect was based in Assam’s Jorhat named Neeraj Bishnoi.
The police conducted raids in Assam’s Jorhat and arrested Neeraj Bishnoi on Thursday. During interrogation, he disclosed that he was the one who created the controversial app on GitHub. Additionally, he admitted to having created the Twitter handle @bullibai_ among others.
Neeraj Bishnoi, the alleged mastermind behind the whole idea, informed the police that the GitHub app had been developed in November, 2021 and finally updated in December, 2021.
Further, the twitter account was created on 31st December and he also made several other accounts. He was constantly monitoring the updates on social media, he said.
When the case began to be probed by the police, he created another Twitter account (@giyu44) and tweeted, “You have arrested the wrong person, Mumbai Police.”
This last tweet was in relation to a series of arrests made by the Mumbai Police while probing the matter.
As many as 3 arrests were made before the cops nabbed Neeraj Bishnoi in Jorhat, Assam.
This includes 18-year-old Shweta Singh, 21-year-old Mayank Rawal and 21-year-old Vishal Kumar Jha.
Vishal Kumar has been sent to police custody till January 10 by a Bandra court and Shweta Singh is on a transit remand.
In a press conference on 5 January, they indicated that more arrests were in the offing. “The Mumbai Police was just an hour away from his (Neeraj Bishnoi’s) location to nab but Delhi Police detained him (Neeraj Bishnoi),” a police source told a media outlet.
Neeraj Bishnoi is a 20-year-old resident of Digambar area of Jorhat, Assam.
Neeraj studies in the second year of B.Tech in the Vellore Institute of Technology in Bhopal.
When the college authorities got to know of the crime of Neeraj, they decided to suspend him from college.
The accused Neeraj Bishnoi was produced by the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations unit (IFSO) unit at the deputy magistrate’s house.
The police had demanded seven days’ custody and it was granted by the deputy magistrate.
But this is not the first time such an app has been making stealing everyone’s attention. Another app by the name Sulli deals was also found to be indulging in similar activities in July, 2021.
However, no arrests were made in relation to the “Sulli Deals” app.
This complacency of the police in regards to the Sulli Deals matter had led many to question the motive of the Delhi police.
The swiftness of action has also prompted many to question why Delhi police was not so proactive 6 months ago in a similar case.
Many have suggested that the pressure was created after arrests were made by Mumbai police. This created a battle between the two police units of the same country.