Telangana HC Takes Up Police Assault of Advocate Case

Hyderabad: A division bench of the Telangana High Court comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G.M. Mohiuddin suo motu took up a public interest litigation concerning the allegations of police assault on an advocate P. Santosh. The suo motu proceedings arise from a complaint lodged by the Kukatpally Bar Association, which sought strict action against Borabanda police personnel allegedly involved in manhandling the advocate. It is the case of the complainant writ petitioner that a house at Banjaranagar was raided following a complaint against the house owner relating to illegal liquor sale. The police broke open the doors, entered the house of the advocate who is living in the rented portion of that house. The police verbally abused the advocate and his wife and dragged him out in his nightwear. It was further contended that the incident was reportedly captured in CCTV footage, police roughing up the couple. It was contended that the advocate was taken to the police station, where he was again assaulted, despite informing officers of a prior orthopaedic surgery on his right hand. However, the government pleader appearing for the police authorities contended that they got credible information about illegal sale of IMFL on the premises and the police officials, after making a GD entry and informing superiors, proceeded to the spot with staff and found three men and a woman running the belt shop along with house owner Sarala, supplying liquor sourced from Sri Laxmi Wines. It was further contended that IMFL bottles were also seized. It is further alleged that notices under Section 35(3) BNSS were issued to the accused. However, the said accused were allegedly unreachable, and notice was sent via WhatsApp. It was further contended that the said article is circulated falsely in the news and social media triggering a representation from the Telangana Advocates JAC. The panel after hearing the arguments directed the response of the state be served on the implead petitioners and posted the matter for further hearing.

‘Illegal detention’ case taken up for hearing

Justice N.V. Shravan Kumar of the Telangana High Court took on file a writ plea alleging illegal detention by the Banjara Hills Police and questioned how the police could pick up the petitioner without an FIR or authority. The judge was hearing a writ plea filed by R.V. Samrat Vamshi challenging the alleged high-handed action of the police. The petitioner contended that he was taken from his residence on November 29 by police in plainclothes and was moved to the police station. It is alleged that the police threatened him to “settle a matter,” detaining him and taking his mobile phone and vehicle into illegal custody. Counsel for the petitioner S. Goutham contended that the police continued to intimidate him by summoning him daily and repeatedly visiting his residence, creating fear for his family. It was further contended that, to cover up their illegal actions, the police registered a fabricated case on December 1 based on an incident allegedly from May. The counsel argued that the police ignored statutory safeguards and violated the Supreme Court’s directions in Arnesh Kumar regarding the arrest procedure. The judge expressed dissatisfaction over the police conduct, including the unlawful detention of the vehicle of the petitioner and directed the Banjara Hills police to file their explanation within two weeks.

Denial of access to CMRF portal challenged

Justice Nagesh Bheemapaka of the Telangana High Court took on file a writ plea challenging the denial of access to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) portal to a hospital in Mahbubabad. The petitioner was also seeking consequential deletion of the name of the hospital from the list of block-listed hospitals displayed in the camp offices of local MLAs and MPs. The judge was hearing a writ plea filed by Dharavath Rupa. The petitioner would contend that prior to the present denial, the hospital was regularly participating in the CMRF mechanism, enabling eligible patients to claim reimbursement for medical treatment. It was her case that the action of the authorities in preventing portal access amounts to an unlawful restriction on the ability of the hospital to process patient reimbursement claims. She further asserted that the display of the hospital’s name as a block-listed hospital in the camp offices of MLAs and MPs in Mahbubabad district stigmatises the institution, damages its reputation and violates principles of natural justice. The judge deferred the matter for further hearing on December 15.

3 accused in intercaste marriage murder case get bail

The Telangana High Court on Tuesday granted bail to three accused facing trial in connection with the alleged murder of a youth following his intercaste marriage with the sister of two of the accused. The judge was hearing criminal petitions filed by Kotla Naveen, Kotla Vamshi and Bairu Mahesh. The accused are charged with causing death with intent, criminal acts done with common intention, and aggravated offences alleged to have been committed against a Scheduled Caste person under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. According to the prosecution, the deceased married a girl against the wishes of her family, following which he allegedly received threats from her brothers. The complainant, the deceased’s father, lodged a report after his son was found dead near a pond at the outskirts of Pillalamarri village. The petitioners were arrested on January 29 and have remained in judicial custody since then. Senior Counsel Vinod Kumar Deshpande appearing for the accused argued that the petitioners were falsely implicated solely on account of the inter-caste marriage and family hostility. It was further contended that the case rests on circumstantial evidence and alleged extrajudicial confessions, with no direct material linking them to the death. The defence further contended that the deceased had multiple criminal cases pending against him, creating several possible motives unrelated to the accused. Senior counsel also argued that the victim and her husband were in a relationship for over a few years and therefore charges of honour killing were wholly baseless. It was also argued that since the charge sheet was filed and the investigation completed, further custodial detention amounts to pre-trial punishment. After hearing submissions, the judge enlarged the petitioners on bail.