Hyderabad: Justice K. Lakshman of the Telangana High Court on Monday directed the station house officer of Pet Basheerabad police station not to take any coercive steps or insist on the presence of Jithender Raj, personal assistant of former MP A.P. Jitender Reddy, till March 11 regarding the case of alleged conspiracy to execute minister Srinivas Goud.
The judge was hearing a lunch motion criminal petition filed by Raj, who requested the court to quash the notices issued under Section 160 CrPC to him by the police, asking him to appear before them within two days. He submitted that the police had mechanically forwarded the notices to him.
N. Ramchander Rao, senior counsel and former BJP MLC, appearing for the petitioner, argued that Raju stayed in New Delhi and after the investigating officer sent him the notice through WhatsApp. Raju acknowledged the same and asked for the FIR copy as well as time to appear before the investigating officer as his wife was bedridden. The investigating officer sent two notices to Raju on March 3 and 5, directing him to appear before him on March 7.
Ramchander Rao said that as per Section 160 CrPC, the investigating officer had no power to summon a person to appear before him, who did not stay in his jurisdictional area.
The judge adjourned the criminal petition to Friday to hear on the legal aspect of whether the investigating officer can issue notice under Section 160 CrPC directing a person to appear before him. The police issued notices to Raj on the ground that he had provided shelter to the perpetrators, who tried to eliminate Srinivas Goud, in New Delhi.
