1 APHC010530872025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction) [3521] THURSDAY,THE SIXTEENTH DAY OF OCTOBER TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY FIVE PRESENT THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 10316/2025 Between: Shaik Mukthiyar, and Others ...PETITIONER/ACCUSED(S) AND The State Of Andhra Pradesh ...RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT Counsel for the Petitioner/accused(S): 1. MALIREDDY GOWTHAM Counsel for the Respondent/complainant: 1. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR The Court made the following: ORDER: The Criminal Petition has been filed under Sections 480 and 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for brevity ‘the BNSS’), seeking to enlarge the Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 on bail in Crime No.158 of 2025 of Dargamitta Police Station, SPSR Nellore District, was registered against the Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 herein for the offences punishable under Section 8(c) read with Section 20(b)(ii)(C) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for brevity ‘the NDPS Act’). 2 2. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned Assistant Public Prosecutor. Perused the record. 3. The petitioners/accused Nos.1 to 6 were allegedly indulged in possession of transportation of 1.5 kgs of ganja each in total 9 kgs of ganja. It is not a commercial quantity. The petitioners were arrested on 28.08.2025. They have been in judicial custody for the past 50 days. The petitioners are permanent resident of Nellore District. They have got fixed abode. The learned Assistant Public Prosecutor submits that the petitioners are rowdy sheeters. There are several cases booked against them including the offence of murder. Be that as it may, the petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 are presumed to be innocents until the guilt is proved. In Prabhakar Tiwari v. State of U.P. and others 1, the Hon’ble Apex Court has categorically held that criminal antecedents should not be taken into consideration while considering an application for grant of bail. So far, three witnesses are examined. All the examined witnesses are official witnesses. Therefore, the possibility of the petitioners threatening the witnesses, hampering the investigation, or tampering with evidence does not arise. 4. Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, the nature and gravity of allegations levelled against the Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6, this Court is inclined to enlarge the Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 on bail. 1 2020 (11) SCC 648 3 5. In the result, the Criminal Petition is allowed with the following stringent conditions: i. The Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 shall be enlarged on bail subject to they executing a personal bond for a sum of Rs.25,000/- (Rupees Twenty Five Thousand only) each with two sureties for the like sum each to the satisfaction of the learned V Additional Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Nellore. ii. The Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 shall appear before the Station House Officer concerned, on every Saturday in between 10:00 am and 05:00 pm, till cognizance is taken by the learned the Trial Court. iii. The Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 shall not leave the limits of the State of Andhra Pradesh without prior permission from the Station House Officer concerned. iv. The Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 shall not commit or indulge in commission of any offence in future. v. The Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 shall not, directly or indirectly, make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case so as to dissuade him/her from disclosing such facts to the court or to any police officer. vi. The Petitioners/Accused Nos.1 to 6 shall surrender their passport, if any, to the investigating officer. If they claim that they does not have a passport, they shall 4 submit an affidavits to that effect to the Investigating Officer. _________________________ DR. Y. LAKSHMANA RAO, J Date: 16.10.2025 S D P 5 THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 10316 OF 2025 16.10.2025 S D P