APHC010356252025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI WEDNESDAY, THE TWENTY THIRD DAY OF JULY TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY FIVE PRESENT THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 7369 OF Between; Veluganti Ganga Raju, Wrongly typed as Penuganti Ganga Raju S/o. Venkataramana, Aged about 23 Rajanagaram (Mandal), East Godavari District. years, R/o. Raghunadhapuram Village ...Petitioner/A1 AND The State of Andhra Pradesh, Rep. by its Public Prosecutor, High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravathi. ...Respondent Petition under Section 482 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Samhitha, 2023 (Sec.438 of Cr.P.C) praying that in the circumstances stated Memorandum of Grounds of Criminal Petition, the High Court to enlarge the petitioner on bail in the event of his arrest in Crime No. 13 of 2025 dated: 26.11.2024 East Godavari District. Counsel for the Petitioner: SRI KADIYAM NEELAKANTESWARA Counsel for the Respondent PUBLIC PROSECUTOR The Court made the following ORDER: in the may be pleased on the file of the Rajahmundry I Town Police Station RAO APHC010356252025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction) [3521] WEDNESDAY,THE TWENTY THIRD DAY OF JULY TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY FIVE PRESENT THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 7369/2025 Between: VELUGANTI GANGA RAJU, S/0. VENKATARAMANA, AGED ABOUT 23 YEARS, R/0. RAGHUNADHAPURAM VILLAGE, RAJANAGARAM (MANUAL), EAST GODAVARI DISTRICT ...PETITIONER/ACCUSED AND THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH, Rep. by its Public Prosecutor, High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravathi ...RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT Counsel for the Petitioner/accused: KADIYAM NEELAKANTESWARA RAO Counsel for the Respondent/complainant: PUBLIC PROSECUTOR 2 Dr. YLR, J Crl.P.No.7369 of2025 Dated 23.07.2025 The Court made the following: ORDER: The Criminal Petition has been filed under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for brevity ‘the BNSS’) by the petitioner/Accused No.1 for granting of pre-arrest bail in connection with Crime No. 13 of 2025 of Rajahmundry I Town Police Station, East Godavari District, registered for the alleged offences punishable under Sections 7-B read with 8-B of the Andhra Pradesh Prohibition Act, 2020. 2. The case of the prosecution is that on 25.01.2025 at 07:30 A.M., on receipt of credible information about unauthorized sale and possession of I.D. arrack, the Sub-Inspector of Police, Rajahmundry I- Town Police Station, along with staff conducted a Veerabhadranagar, Thadithota, Rajamahendravaram. During the raid, they noticed a male and a female on the roadside with a plastic bag. On seeing the police, both individuals fled the scene, abandoning the bag. Upon inspection, the bag was found to contain a polythene cover holding 20 liters of I.D. liquor, valued at approximately Rs.6,000/-. The accused Nos.1 and 2 were currently absconding. Hence, the case was registered against the petitioner/Accused No.1. raid at 3 Dr. YLR, i Grip.No.7369 of 2025 Dated 23.07.2025 Sri Kadiyam Neelakanteswara Rao, the learned counsel for the petitioner, submits that the petitioner has not committed any offence; he was falsely implicated in this case; he is sole breadwinner of his family; he is ready to abide any conditions to be imposed by this Court, and it is 3. urged to grant pre-arrest bail to the petitioner/Accused No.1. Per contra, Ms.P.Akila Naidu, the learned Assistant Public 4. Prosecutor, opposed in granting of pre-arrest bail stating that investigation is not completed; if the petitioner is enlarged on pre-arrest bail, he would not be available for the investigation and he will repeat the same offence, and it is urged to dismiss the bail application. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned 5. Assistant Public Prosecutor. Perused the record. As seen from the mediator’s report dated 25.01.2025, the Sub- 6. Inspector of Police, Rajahmundry l-Town Police Station, recorded that the accused gave a confessional statement about 20 litres of ID Liquior. The accused further revealed that the petitioner is the supplier of ID Liquor. Granting of the pre-arrest bail to an accused is not a shield or protection for having committed an offence as per the judgment of the Dr. YLR, J Crl.P.No.7369of2025 Dated 23.07.2025 Hon’ble Apex Court in Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia v. State of Panjab^ and Sushila Aggarwal v. State of Delhi^. The learned Assistant Public Prosecutor submits that there one (01) adverse similar antecedent against the petitioner on earlier occasion i.e., Crime No.253 of 2021. 7. are In view of the adverse antecedent against the petitioner and his specific role played in this case, he is disentitled to get pre-arrest bail. Hence, this Court does not deem it fit to grant pre-arrest bail to the petitioner. However, the learned counsel for the petitioner requests this Court to grant liberty to the petitioner to surrender before the learned jurisdictional Magistrate concerned and move an appropriate application for his release before the learned Magistrate concerned. 8. 9. In the result, the Criminal Petition is dismissed granting liberty to the petitioner/A-1 to surrender before the learned jurisdictional Magistrate concerned within one (01) week from the date of receipt of copy of this order, and move an appropriate application before the learned Magistrate for enlarging him on bail. The learned Magistrate shall endeavor to dispose of the application on its own merits in (1980) 2 see 565 ^(2020) 5 see 1 5 Dr. YLR, J Crl.P.No.7369of2025 Dated 23.07.2025 accordance with law by giving due and sufficient opportunity of hearing to the learned Public Prosecutor before the learned Magistrate and pass appropriate orders within a reasonable time, preferably in two (02) days. Sd/- M SRINIVAS ASSISTANT REG^^AR //TRUE COPY// S N OFFICER To, 1. The Station House Officer, Rajahmundry I Town Police Station, East Godavari District. 2. One CC to Sri. Kadiyam Neelakanteswara Rao, Advocate [OPUC] 3. Two CCs to Public Prosecutor, High Court of Andhra Pradesh Amaravati. [OUT] 4. Two CD Copies at Chp sree •n HIGH COURT DATED;23/07/2025 ORDER CRLP NO. 7369 OF 2025 Cj g 0 2 AUG 2025 M cow ^ . Current Section ^'Ss:£esPATCVV€5<<^ DISMISSING THE CRIMINAL PETITION