Section 35(3) BNSS Notice from Another State — What to Do When Police Summon You for Cyber Crime Investigation

Around late September 2024, a young professional from Gomti Nagar, Lucknow received a formal notice through speed post. It was stamped by the Cyber Crime Police Station, Nagpur District, Maharashtra, and directed him — Rohan Gupta, a mid-level accounts executive at a Pune-based Mahindra Group vendor firm — to appear immediately before the investigating officer in connection with a case registered under Sections 316(2), 318(4), and 319(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The notice warned that failure to appear would be treated as non-cooperation with the investigation.

Rohan was completely blindsided. He had no idea what the case was about, had never visited the police station named in the notice, and didn't know a single person in Nagpur. He first approached a local general advocate in Lucknow, who advised him to simply ignore the notice. That approach, predictably, made things worse — a follow-up communication from the police arrived within days, with a sharper tone.

A colleague then referred Rohan to Advocate Sudhir Rao. From the first consultation, the approach was methodical. The notice was examined closely for jurisdiction, the FIR details were verified, and a carefully drafted response was sent to the investigating officer within a lawful framework. Simultaneously, a legal strategy was prepared for the possibility of an anticipatory bail application. The matter was handled with the kind of procedural precision that comes from regularly dealing with cross-state criminal investigations. Within a few weeks, Rohan's position was stabilised, and the investigation did not result in any arrest or coercive action against him.

You can read about this case in detail at https://sudhirrao.com/section-35-bnss-notice-another-state-cyber-crime-investigati/