Telangana High Court grants conditional bail to movie piracy accused ‘Ibomma’ Ravi

Hyderabad, Feb 18: Justice K. Sujana of the Telangana High Court granted conditional bail to Emmadi Ravi, popularly known as ‘Ibomma’ Ravi, in connection with a movie piracy case, while imposing stringent conditions to ensure his cooperation with the ongoing investigation.

The Court passed the order in a batch of criminal petitions filed by Ravi, who was arrested in November last year following cases registered by the Central Crime Station (CCS), Hyderabad, alleging large-scale online piracy of newly released films. According to the prosecution, Ravi allegedly operated one of the country’s largest movie piracy networks through the “Ibomma” platform, illegally streaming copyrighted Telugu and other films soon after their release, causing substantial losses to the film industry. The prosecution also claimed that the platform generated revenue through online betting advertisements hosted on the website.

Counsels for the petitioner, Muzhaffar Ullah Khan and P. Balagopendranath, contended that the accused had been falsely implicated primarily on the basis of alleged confessional statements and that no direct admissible evidence linked him to the offences. They further argued that the petitioner had been in judicial custody for over 90 days without filing of a charge sheet, thereby entitling him to statutory bail. Public Prosecutor Palle Nageshwar Rao opposed the plea, submitting that the petitioner was the mastermind behind an organised piracy network, posed a flight risk, and could influence witnesses or tamper with digital evidence if released.

After hearing both sides, the Court noted that the petitioner had remained in custody since November 18, 2025, and that substantial investigation had already been completed, with material witnesses examined and relevant evidence collected. The Court observed that the petitioner’s implication was largely based on statements whose evidentiary value would be tested during trial and that further custodial interrogation was not necessary.

Observing that concerns of the prosecution could be addressed through stringent conditions, Justice Sujana allowed the bail petitions subject to several conditions, including daily appearance before the investigating officer until filing of the charge sheet, surrender of passport, restriction from operating piracy-related online platforms, and prohibition on contacting witnesses or co-accused.