APHC010074072026 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction) [3521] THURSDAY,THE TWELFTH DAY OF FEBRUARY TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY SIX PRESENT THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 1148/2026 Between: 1. CHUNDRU RAJYALAKSHMI, W/O CHUNDRU BHASKAR RAO, AGED ABOUT 80 YEARS,R/O H.NO.6-14, OPPOSITE TO ELECTRICAL SUB STATION, NEAR COTTON STATUE,VELPURU VILLAGE, TANUKU MANDAL, WEST GODAVARI DISTRICT, ANDHRA PRADESH. ...PETITIONER/ACCUSED AND 1. THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH, REP BY ITS PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGHCOURT OF A.P., AMARAVATHI, 2. KANTIPUDI SRIHARI, S/O KRISHNA, AGED ABOUT 48 YEARS, HONBLE CIVILJUDGE JUNIOR DIVISION, VUYYURU, R/O D.NO.7- 136/301, THOTLAVALLURUROAD,BEHIND RTC BUS STAND, KRISHNA DISTRICT. 3. CHUNDRU ALIAS KANTIPUDI VENKATA LAKSHMI, W/O KANTIPUDI SRIHARI, AGEDABOUT 43 YEARS, R/O D.NO.7-136/301, THOTLAVALLURU ROAD, BEHINDRTC BUS STAND, KRISHNA DISTRICT. 4. GODITHI GOVINDA RAO ALIAS GOVINDU, S/OPAPARAO,AGED ABOUT 47YEARS, R/O D.NO.1-226/1, SRI SUBRAHMANYESWARA SWAMY TEMPLEROAD, VELPURU VILLAGE, TANUKU MANDAL, WEST GODAVARI DISTRICT,ANDHRA PRADESH. 5. BALUSU KRISHNA RAO, S/O. NOT KNOWN, R/O. DOOR NO.5- 160A,PEDDAVAM VILLAGE, KOVVURU MANDAL, WEST GODAVARI 2 DISTRICT, ANDHRAPRADESH. 6. UPPULURI SAI, S/O KOTESWARA RAO, R/O DOOR NO.1-1, KUMARADEVAMVILLAGE, KOVVURU MANDAL, WEST GODAVARI DISTRICT, ANDHRA PRADESH. ...RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT(S): Counsel for the Petitioner/accused: 1. D TARAKA PRASAD Counsel for the Respondent/complainant(S): 1. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR The Court made the following: ORDER: The Criminal Petition has been filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for brevity, ‘the Cr.P.C.’)/Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for brevity, ‘the BNSS’), seeking a direction to the learned Principal Civil Judge (Junior Division)-cum-Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Tanuku, to dispose of the Crl.M.P.No.1236 of 2025 in Cr.No.203 of 2024 of Tanuku Rural Police Station, West Godavari District, as early as possible. 2. Heard the learned counsel for the Petitioner and the learned Assistant Public Prosecutor. Perused the record. 3. As seen from the record, the Petitioner seeks expeditious disposal of Crl.M.P.No.1236 of 2025 in Cr.No.203 of 2024 of Tanuku Rural Police Station, West Godavari District on the file of the learned Principal Civil Judge (Junior Division)-cum-Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Tanuku. The Hon’ble Apex 3 Court in Abdul Rehman Antulay v. R.S. Nayak1, at paragraph No.86 (10) held as under: “(10) It is neither advisable nor practicable to fix any time-limit for trial of offences. Any such rule is bound to be qualified one. Such rule cannot also be evolved merely to shift the burden of proving justification on to the shoulders of the prosecution. In every case of complaint of denial of right to speedy trial, it is primarily for the prosecution to justify and explain the delay. At the same time, it is the duty of the court to weigh all the circumstances of a given case before pronouncing upon the complaint. The Supreme Court of USA too has repeatedly refused to fix any such outer time-limitin spite of the Sixth Amendment. Nor do we think that not fixing any such outer limit ineffectuates the guarantee of right to speedy trial.” 4. The Hon’ble Apex Court in High Court Bar Association, Allahabad v. State of U.P2 at paragraph No.32 held as under: “32. Therefore, constitutional Courts should not normally fix a time-bound schedule for disposal of cases pending in any Court. The pattern of pendency of various categories of cases pending in every Court, including High Courts, is different. The situation at the grassroots level is better known to the judges of the concerned Courts. Therefore, the issue of giving out-of- turn priority to certain cases should be best left to the concerned Courts. The orders fixing the outer limit for the disposal of cases should be passed only in exceptional circumstances to meet extraordinary situations.” 5. It is observed that the practice of giving directions to the learned Trial Courts fixing the schedule for disposal of the cases were deprecated by the Hon’ble Apex Court in Abdul Rehman Antulay and High Court Bar Association, Allahabad supra. However, the right to speedy disposal is one of the facets of the fundamental right guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. 6. Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, the learned Principal Civil Judge (Junior Division)-cum-Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Tanuku, is directed to dispose of the case in Crl.M.P.No.1236 of 2025 in 1(1992) 1 SCC 225 2AIROnline 2024 SC 143 4 Cr.No.203 of 2024 of Tanuku Rural Police Station, West Godavari District as expeditiously as possible, and submit a report to that effect to the Registrar (Judicial). 7. In the result, the Criminal Petition is disposed of. As a sequel, Miscellaneous petitions, if any pending, shall stand closed. _________________________ DR. Y. LAKSHMANA RAO, J Date: 12.02.2026 PRA 5 08 THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 1148 of 2026 Date: 12.02.2026 PRA