BILLA MANEMMA Vs. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is the mother of Billa Komalreddy (hereinafter referred to as "the alleged detenu"). She complains that the alleged detenu was taken by police from her house in the intervening night of March 22-23 at about 4.30 a.m. On enquiries she learnt that the alleged detenu was in Guntur II Town Police Station (Kothapeta). She sent her other son to the Police Station, but he was not permitted to see the alleged detenu. When she herself went to the Police Station she was told by the Station House Officer of the Police Station, the 3rd respondent herein, that the alleged detenu was taken away by the CID Anti Dacoity Cell, Hyderabad, on 4-4-1995. She went to Hyderabad and could see her son on 14-4-1995. She alleges that her son was kept in illegal detenu was arrested on 23-5-1995 he was produced before the VII Addl. Munsif Magistrate, Guntur on 23-5-1995. The learned Magistrate remanded him to judicial custody. She moved an application for bail on 28/05/1995 in Cr. No. 1/92 of Chilakaluripet Rural Police Station. But the application was filed before the learned III Addl. Sessions Judge, Guntur, who granted bail on 25-8-1995. In the Case Diary produced before the Court it was noted that he was involved in 15 cases. She says that pursuant to the order of the learned III Additional Sessions Judge, dated 25/08/1995 he was not released on bail, instead a device was adopted by the authorities to get over the bail order by showing his detention in judicial custody in connection with other alleged crimes and because of the said device he is continuously kept in custody. On these facts the petitioner prays for a writ of habeas corpus declaring the detention of the alleged detenu as illegal and setting him at liberty after producing him before this Court.

(2.) The Deputy Superintendent of Police, attached to the 2nd respondent, filed a counter-affidavit stating that the alleged detenu is a member of a notorious and dangerous inter-State criminal gangs of dacoits of 10 members who are dangerous criminals armed with firearms and knives. They attack innocent passengers travelling by APSRTC or KSRTC buses by getting into the buses as bona fide passengers and then putting the crew and the passengers in the fear of death of showing pistols and knives and rob them of their valuables. The gang which is operating under the leadership of one Tarla Sankara Reddy, committed as many as 60 offences of robberies in 13 districts of Andhra Pradesh. The earliest offence was registered as Crime No. 89/89 of Chillakallu Police Station of Krishna District. During investigation it came to light that the alleged detenu was involved in as many as 15 crimes and he was accused of the offences under the Indian Penal Code and under the Indian Arms Act. On 23-5-1995 he was arrested when he was hiding himself in the premises of the Zilla Parishad High School of Etukuru village in Guntur District. On his confession huge properties, a revolver and a knife were recovered from him. On the same day he was produced before the VII Additional Munsif-Magistrate, Guntur in Crime No. 1/92 under Section 392 of the Indian Penal Code of Chilakaluripet Rural Police Station. It is admitted that though the bail application filed by the petitioner was initially dismissed by the Magistrate, yet bail was granted by the learned III Additional Sessions Judge, Guntur on 28-5-1995. He further states that the alleged detenu obtained bail in five cases but in one case, viz., Crime No. 6/94 of Suryapet Rural Police Station, Nalgonda District, the bail application was rejected by the learned Magistrate on 9-1-1996 and also by the learned Sessions Judge on 30-1-1996. In view of this fact the alleged detenu is in jail which cannot be said to be an illegal custody. In eight cases investigations were completed and charge-sheets were filed against the alleged detenu in various Courts; out of 15 cases, in 12 cases identification parades were held and the alleged detenu was identified in nine cases by the witnesses. In six cases remand orders were passed by the various courts in connection with various crimes against the alleged detenu. On those facts, it is prayed that the Writ Petition be dismissed.

(3.) The 3rd respondent, Sub-Inspector of Police of II Town Police Station of Guntur, filed a separate counter-affidavit. He denied that the alleged detenu was taken into custody by the Police on the intervening night of March 22nd and 23rd at about 4.30 a.m. and was lodged in Guntur II Town Police Station (Kothapeta). The allegation that the younger son of the petitioner was not permitted to see the alleged detenu is also denied. So also the allegations that the petitioner approached the Police Station in the first week of April and the 3rd respondent informed her that the detenu was taken away by the CID Anti Dacoity Cell, Hyderabad on 4-4-1995, are denied. He says that after coming to know of the filing of the Writ Petition, he caused enquiries into the matter and came to know that the alleged detenu was taken into custody by the Anti Dacoity Cell Police officials on 23-5-1995 and he was produced before the VII Additional Munsif-Magistrate, Guntur and on the same day he was remanded to judicial custody. He adopted the counter-affidavit filed by the 2nd respondent.