New Delhi: The Delhi High Court took up a petition filed by Richa Dubey, seeking to stop the release of the web series ‘UP 77’, which was reported to be based on the life of gangster Vikas Dubey. The plea was mentioned for urgent listing before a bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, and the court allowed an urgent listing of the matter.

According to the petition details reported in legal media, the series was slated to release on December 25, prompting the petitioner to seek immediate intervention.

The case brought renewed focus on the public and legal sensitivity around screen portrayals of real criminal cases—particularly those involving ongoing reputational concerns of surviving family members. While the High Court did not record findings on the merits at the mention stage, the matter moved into judicial scrutiny due to the proximity of the scheduled release date.

Vikas Dubey was a Kanpur-based gangster who came under intense national spotlight in July 2020 after a police team was ambushed in Bikru village, leaving eight police personnel dead. Dubey was later taken into custody after surrendering in Madhya Pradesh on July 9, 2020, but was killed the next morning while being transported back to Uttar Pradesh, with police claiming he was shot in “self-defence” after allegedly attempting to snatch a weapon.

Dubey’s death had triggered widespread demands for an independent probe. The Supreme Court ultimately permitted an inquiry commission headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice B.S. Chauhan to investigate the circumstances of the killing. The commission later gave a clean chit to the Uttar Pradesh Police, while also recommending action against officials accused of patronising Dubey; the Supreme Court in July 2022 directed that the report be made public and asked the state government to act on the recommendations.

Separately, entertainment reporting on ‘UP 77’ had described it as an Uttar Pradesh-based crime story inspired by a real-life gangster encounter.