[3521 ] IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAV MONDAY, THE 24™ DAY OF AUGUST, 2026. :PRESENT: THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RA<£^ CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 7057 OF 2026 % r**;- aci W O .4 Between: Kalingapatnam Kesava, S/o. Landayya, aged about 22 years, R/o; Bhulokamatha Street, Tekkali Village, Tekkali Mandal, Srikakulam District, A.P. Petitioner/Accused No.2 AND The State of Andhra Pradesh, Rep by its Public Prosecutor, High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravati. Respondent Petition Petition under Sections 480 & 483 of BNSS (Old Sections 437 & 439 of Cr.P.C), is filed praying that in the circumstances stated in the affidavit filed in support of the Criminal Petition, the High Court may be pleased to enlarge the Petitioner/Accused No.2 on bail pending disposal of Crime No. 103/2026'of Tekkali Police Station, Srikakulam District The petition coming on for hearing, upon perusing the Petition and the affidavit filed in support thereof and upon hearing the arguments of BALABHADRUNI MANOHAR Advocate for the Petitioner, PROSECUTOR for the Respondent and the Court made the following. ORDER PUBLIC APHC010428192026 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction) [3521] MONDAY, THE 24**^ DAY OF AUGUST 2026 PRESENT THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 7057/2026 Between: 1.KALINGAPATNAM KESAVA, S/0. LANDAYYA, AGED ABOUT 22 YEARS,R/O. BHULOKAMATHA STREET, TEKKALI VILLAGETEKKALI MANUAL, SRIKAKULAM DISTRICT, A.P. ...PETITIONER/ACCUSED AND 1.THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH, Rep by its Public Prosecutor,High Court of Andhra Pradesh atAmaravati. ...RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT Counsel for the Petitioner/accused: 1.BALABHADRUNI MANOHAR Counsel for the Respondent/complainant: 1. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR The Court made the following: 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.2 on bail in Crime No. 103 of 2026 of 2 Tekkali Police Station, Srikakulam District, registered for the alleged offences punishable under Sections 20(b)(ii)(B) read with 8(c) and 27(A) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for brevity ‘the NDPS Act’). Mr.BaJabhadruni Manohar, learned Counsel for the Petitioner, submits that the Petitioner is innocent of the alleged offence and 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. The Petitioner undertakes to strictly adhere to any conditions that may be imposed by this Court. Hence, it is urged to allow the Petition. 2. 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 undenA^ay 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 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. On perusal of the record, the Petitioner is arraigned as Accused No.2 in this case. The allegation against the Petitioner is that he was found dealing 5. 3 with 2.155 kgs of ganja, which is not a commercial quantity. Though the learned Assistant Public Prosecutor submits that the Petitioner was involved in Crime No. 198 of 2023 and that a suspect sheet is to be opened against him, 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^ at para No.7, observed that mere pendency of criminal antecedents itself is not a ground to deny the request for grant of bail. 6. The Petitioner is at the impressionable age of 22 years. He arrested on 16.06.2026. He has been in judicial custody for the past 70 days. So far, seven witnesses have been examined, and the material portion of the investigation has been completed. The Petitioner is a permanent resident of Tekkali Village and Mandal, Srikakulam District. He has got fixed abode. If the Petitioner is enlarged on bail subject to stringent conditions, there is no likelihood of his interfering with the investigation, threatening witnesses tampering with evidence. Having regard to the facts and circumstances of the case, the nature and gravity of the allegations levelled against the Petitioner/Accused No.2, and the period of incarceration in judicial custody, this Court is inclined to enlarge the Petitioner/Accused No.2 on bail subject to stringent conditions. was or 7. \ I / I (2020) 11 see 648 4 In the result, the Criminal Petition is allowed with the following stringent 8. conditions; i. The Petitioner/Accused No.2 shall be enlarged on bail subject to him executing a bond for a sum of Rs.25,000/- (Rupees Twenty Five Thousand only) with two sureties for the like sum each to the satisfaction of the learned Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Tekkali. ii. The P^titioner/Accused No.2 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.2 shall not leave the limits of the Andhra Pradesh without prior permission from the Station House Officer concerned, iv. The Petitioner/Accused No.2 shall not commit or indulge in commission of any offence in future. V. The Petitioner/Accused No.2 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, vi. The’ Petitioner/Accused No.2 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.2 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 to the Investigating Officer. , SD/-Y.SRINIVASU ASSISTANT ^^ISTRAR \ //TRUE COPY/, SECTION OFFICER Tp, 1. The Principal Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Tekkali, Srikakulam District. The Superintendent, District Jail, Srikakglam, Srikakulam District. The Station House Officer, Tekkali Police Station, Srikakulam District. One CC to SRI. BALABHADRUNI MANOHAR Advocate [OPUC] Two CC’s to Public Prosecutor, High Court of AP at Amaravati. [OUT] One spare copy. TVSR 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. HIGH COURT DR.YLR,J DATED: 24/08/2026 ORDER 5 CRLP.No.7057 of 2026 \ ALLOWED