1 APHC010379692019 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction) [3333] MONDAY, THE TWENTY FOURTH DAY OF FEBRUARY TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY FIVE PRESENT THE HONOURABLE SMT JUSTICE V.SUJATHA CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 6904/2019 Between: Kopuri Kantha Rao, and others ...PETITIONER/ACCUSED(S) AND The State of Andhra Pradesh ...RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT Counsel for the Petitioner/accused(S): 1. RAJA REDDY KONETI Counsel for the Respondent/complainant: 1. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR (AP) The Court made the following: 2 ORDER This Criminal Petition is filed by the petitioners/accused Nos.1 to 3 seeking to quash the proceedings in Crime No.349 of 2019, dated 24.09.2019 on the file of Gannavaram Police Station, Vijayawada City, Krishna District registered for the offences punishable under Sections 270, 273, 328 of IPC and Sections 5, 22 of Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (for short, ‘COTP Act’). 2. The brief facts of the FIR are that on 24.09.2019, at about 2.00 p.m., on receipt of credible information regarding banned gutkha and khaini products, the Station House Officer, Gannavaram Police Station, along with mediators, proceeded to Varun Benz showroom, beside Gannavaram-Vijayawada Road NH-16, Kesarapalli, and found the accused Nos.1 to 3/petitioners herein loading polythene packets from Eicher vehicle MH-14-HD-4577 into Bolero MAX No.AP-30-Y-8859. On seeing the police, the petitioners tried to escape, but they were stopped and questioned. The 1st petitioner confessed about selling of banned tobacco products at Vuyyuru, Vijayawada and surrounding areas, having purchased them from unknown persons at Itchapuram. He further confessed that the present stock was brought from unknown person in the Eicher van on 23.09.2019, and it had arrived at Kesaripalli on 24.09.2019 and while they were in the process of loading the packets into Bolero Van, they were caught. The 2nd petitioner also confessed about transporting gutkha and khaini packets at the instance of the 1st petitioner and stated that he had arrived at the place for this purpose. The 3rd petitioner also made confession 3 on similar lines and stated that he was involved in the same business. All the petitioners/accused were arrested, and the tobacco products and vehicles were seized under the cover of mediators report. Based on the mediator's report, a case was registered vide FIR No. 349 of 2019 at Gannavaram Police Station, Vijayawada City, against the petitioners. Seeking to quash the proceedings in the said crime, the present petition is filed. 3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that the contents of mediators report do not attract any offences alleged and that the police have no power to register the crime and conduct investigation in respect of the alleged offences under COTP Act. He has drawn the attention of this Court to the common order dated 27.08.2018 passed by this Court Crl.P.No.3731 of 2018 & batch, wherein this Court, in similar circumstances, quashed the offences punishable under IPC and FSS Act, while permitting the police to proceed against the petitioners therein for the offences punishable under the provisions of COTP Act. Learned counsel submits that in some of the cases in the aforesaid batch, where there were no allegations attracting the offences under Sections 5 and 22 of COTP Act, this Court quashed the said offences also, and since in the present case also, the allegations do not attract the said offences, the proceedings against the petitioners may be entirely quashed. 4. Learned Public Prosecutor would also confirm that similar issues have already been adjudicated by this Court in Crl.P.No.3731 of 2018 & batch. 5. As can be seen from the common order dated 27.08.2018 passed in Crl.P.No.3731 of 2018 & batch, a detailed analysis of the similar issues has 4 been carried out by this Court, and it was concluded that none of the Sections of the IPC and FSS alleged, are applicable to the facts and circumstances of the case on hand, and accordingly quashed the proceedings against the petitioners therein insofar as the offences punishable under IPC and FSS. 6. So far as the offences under the COTP Act are concerned, Section 5 of COTP Act deals with prohibition of advertisement of cigarettes and other tobacco products, which is punishable under Section 22 of COTP Act. Having gone through the allegations in some of the cases in the aforesaid batch, this Court had observed that no such allegations were found attracting the said offences. Accordingly, this Court partly allowed the criminal petitions, while permitting the respondents to proceed further in the cases where the allegations attract the provisions of COTP Act. 7. In the instant case, the allegation against the petitioners is that they were found transporting banned tobacco products. There is no allegation that they were involved in advertisement of tobacco products, attracting Sections 5 and 22 of COTP Act. In view of the same, the offences under Sections 5 and 22 of COTP Act are not attracted in the present case also. 8. In view of the above, following the common order dated 27.08.2018 in Crl.P.No.3731 of 2018 & batch, since none of the offences are attracted in the instant case, continuing the proceedings against the petitioners/accused in the subject crime would amount to abuse of process of law and thus, the proceedings against them are liable to be quashed. 9. Accordingly, the Criminal Petition is allowed and the proceedings 5 initiated against the petitioners herein in FIR No.349 of 2019 on the file of Gannavaram Police Station, Vijayawada City, Krishna District, are hereby quashed. The miscellaneous petitions pending, if any, shall also stand closed. ___________________ JUSTICE V.SUJATHA Date: 24.02.2025 KGR