APHC010467702026 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction) [3521] SATURDAY, THE 19th DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2026 PRESENT THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 7821/2026 Between: 1. PANGI KOTESWARARAO, S/O LATE NAGESWARAARAO, AGED 41 YEARS,R/O CHEMKUMPAKALU VILLAGE, LOTHUGEDDA PANCHAYAT,CHINTHAPALLI MANDAL, ALLURI SEETHARAMA RAJU DISTRICT. ...PETITIONER/ACCUSED No.1 AND 1. THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH, Rep. by its Public Prosecutor,High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravati. ...RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT Counsel for the Petitioner/accused: 1. DASARI RAMAKOTESWAR RAO Counsel for the Respondent/complainant: 1. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR The Court made the following: 2 ORDER: 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 Petitioner/Accused No.1 on bail in Crime No.17 of 2026 of Annavaram Police Station, Alluri Sitharama Raju District, registered for the alleged offences punishable under Sections 20(b)(ii)(B), 25 read with 8(c) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for brevity ‘the NDPS Act’). 2. Mr.Dasari Ramakoteswara Rao, the learned counsel for the Petitioner, submits that the Petitioner is innocent of the alleged offence and he has been falsely implicated by the police. It is further submitted that the Petitioner is the sole earning member of the family and, therefore, his incarceration would cause undue hardship to his dependents. He is a law-abiding citizen. The Petitioner undertakes to strictly adhere to any conditions that may be imposed by this Court. Hence it is urged to allow the Criminal Petition. 3. Per contra, Mr.A.Sai Rohith, the learned Assistant Public Prosecutor vehemently opposed the grant of bail to the Petitioner, submitting that the investigation is still underway and several material witnesses remain to be examined. It is contended that if the Petitioner is released on bail at this stage, there is a strong likelihood that he may abscond, thereby hampering the 3 ongoing investigation and evading the process of law and urged to dismiss the Petition. 4. Heard the learned counsel for the Petitioner and the learned Assistant Public Prosecutor. Perused the record. 5. On perusal of the record, this is the second bail application filed by the Petitioner. This Court, vide order dated 01.09.2026 in Crl.P.No.7058 of 2026, dismissed the first bail application filed by the Petitioner. The Petitioner was arrested on 18.07.2026 and has been in judicial custody for the past 63 days. The allegation against the Petitioner is that he was found in conscious and illegal possession of 16.120 kilograms of ganja. 6. There are three similar adverse antecedents reported against the petitioner vide Cr.No.24 of 2023 of Chintapalli Police Station, Cr.No.128 of 2021 of Golugonda Police Station and Cr.No.215 of 2024 of Narsipatnam Town Police Station. It is well‑settled that the Petitioner is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The Hon’ble Apex Court in Prabhakar Tewari v. State of Uttar Pradesh 1 at para No.7, observed that mere pendency of criminal antecedents itself is not a ground to deny the request for grant of bail. 7. The Petitioner is a permanent resident of Chinthapalli Mandal, Alluri Seetharama Raju District. He has got fixed abode. If the Petitioner is enlarged 1 (2020) 11 SCC 648 4 on bail subject to stringent conditions, there is no likelihood of his interfering with the investigation, threatening witnesses, or tampering with evidence. 8. Having regard to the facts and circumstances of the case, the nature and gravity of allegations levelled against the Petitioner/Accused No.1, this Court is inclined to enlarge the Petitioner/Accused No.1 on bail with some stringent conditions. 9. In the result, the Criminal Petition is allowed with the following stringent conditions: i. The Petitioner/Accused No.1 shall be enlarged on bail subject to him executing a bond for a sum of Rs.50,000/- (Rupees Fifty Thousand only) with two sureties for the like sum each to the satisfaction of the learned Additional Judicial First Class Magistrate at Chinthapalli. ii. The Petitioner/Accused No.1 shall appear before the Station House Officer concerned, on every Saturday in between 10:00 am and 05:00 pm, till filing of the charge sheet. iii. The Petitioner/Accused No.1 shall not leave the limits of the State of Andhra Pradesh without prior permission from the Station House Officer concerned. iv. The Petitioner/Accused No.1 shall not commit or indulge in commission of any offence in future. v. The Petitioner/Accused No.1 shall cooperate with the Investigating Officer in further investigation of the case and shall make himself available for interrogation by the Investigating Officer as and when required. 5 vi. The Petitioner/Accused No.1 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. vii. The Petitioner/Accused No.1 shall surrender his passport, if any, to the Investigating Officer, if he claims that he does not have passport, he shall submit an affidavit to that effect before the Investigating Officer. _________________________ DR. Y. LAKSHMANA RAO, J Date: 19.09.2026 PRA/VMM 6 THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 7821 of 2026 Date: 19.09.2026 PRA/VMM