PREM KUMAR SHARMA Vs. STATE OF TELANGANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition is filed to declare the highhanded and illegal action of the police officials of Charminar Police Station in getting the petitioners evicted from the shop bearing M.No.21-1-648, Rikab Gunj, Hyderabad, by force, threat and coercion and by illegally detaining them as illegal, without jurisdiction and abuse of power.

(2.) The case of the petitioners is that they are tenants of the subject premises having taken the premises on lease from the respondent No.5 in the year 1991 on a monthly rent of Rs.500/-. At the time of taking the premises on lease, Rs.65,000.00 was paid as good will. There were misunderstandings between the petitioners and the respondent No.5. Accordingly, the petitioner No.1 and 12 others filed R.C.No.440 of 2003 before the Principal Rent Controller, Hyderabad seeking enhancement of rent and they also filed R.C.No.349 of 2003 before the IV Additional Rent Controller, Hyderabad seeking eviction of the petitioners. R.C.No.440 of 2003 was allowed by order dtd. 17.12.2007 fixing the rent at the rate of Rs.6,405/-. The petitioner No.1 filed preferred an appeal in R.A.No.18of 2008 before the Chief Judge, City Small Causes Court, Hyderabad. The appeal was dismissed by judgment dtd. 08.02.2011. CRP.No.946 of 2011 was filed by the petitioner No.1 challenging the judgment dtd. 08.02.2011. CRP was admitted and interim stay was granted vide order dtd. 25.03.2011 and the petitioner No.1 had been paying 50% of the enhanced rent, apart from original rent of Rs.800/-. R.C.No.349 of 2003 was dismissed by order dtd. 28.02.2004 rejecting the plea of bonafide requirement. R.A.No.145 of 2014 filed by the landlord was dismissed by the Chief Judge, City Small Causes Court, Hyderabad by judgment dtd. 19.09.2017. The landlords did not prefer any revision and thus, the order in R.A.No.145 of 2014 became final.

(3.) While so, the respondents No.5 and 6 hatched a plan to forcefully evict the petitioners from the subject premises with the aid of police. One Bheem Chand filed a suit for specific performance of agreement of sale against Smt. Kamala Bai, the mother of the respondent No.5, in respect of the subject premises in O.S.No.497 of 2015 on the file of the I Senior Civil Judge, City Civil Court, Hyderabad. When the said suit was coming for argument of the defendant, on 13.07.2018 at about 4 PM, about to 7 to 8 policemen from Charminar Police Station came to the shop and asked the petitioners to come to the police station. They went to the police station. They were made to sit in the visitor room for few hours. Later, at about 7 PM, they were taken to the room of the ACP in the first floor. They were made to sit and ACP made some signal to the SI and CI, who were already present in the room. Immediately, the SI came forward and hit the petitioner No.1 on the backside of the neck asking why they are not vacating the shop and asked who is Bheem Chand and sent them to ground floor. At about 11 PM, the petitioner No.2 was asked to come to SI cabin and was asked as to who prepared the agreement in the name of Bheem Chand and was beaten on his hand with leather belt for about one hour. The respondents No.5 and 6 came to the police station around 12 midnight to 1 AM, met the SI and went away staring to them. Again in the night of 14.07.2018, they were called to the CI room and they were asked to hand over the shop to the owners within one hour to enable the police to release them or else they will not be released and will be taken on remand.