VADDE RAMESH Vs. STATE OF AP

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Criminal Petition, under Sec. 482 of the BNSS is filed seeking to enlarge the petitioner/accused on anticipatory bail in connection with Crime No.221 of 2024 of Atmakur Special Enforcement Bureau Police Station of Nandyal District for the offences punishable under Sec. 7 read with 8(b)(i) of AP Prohibition Act, 1995 (Amendment) Act, 2020.

(2.) Heard arguments of Sri E.Anjana Reddy, the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Assistant Public Prosecutor for respondent/ State.

(3.) A perusal of the case diary discloses that on 3/7/2024 early in the morning, the officers of SEB were on a route check. At about 03.30 am, they noticed a Tata Indica Vista car bearing registration No. TS 09 ED 3518 near a culvert on the road from Velpanur to Regadaguduru within the limits of Atmakur Police Station. At a distance of 20 meters, the driver stopped the said car and got out of it and ran away and the police party could not decipher who he was. They reached the car and found in it, various corton boxes and on opening them, they detected 2878 liquor packets made in Karnataka and to be exclusively sold in Karnataka. Thus, it was a case of non-duty paid liquor smuggled to the State. They seized the car and the contraband. During investigation, they verified and noticed that the present petitioner is the registered owner of the car. It is in those circumstances, the bail in anticipation is prayed by the petitioner.