ORDER :

These Criminal Petitions are filed under Sections 437 & 439 of Criminal Procedure Code (‘Cr.P.C.’ in short), seeking bail, by the petitioner/A3 and petitioner/A4 respectively, in S.C.No.110 of 2016 on the file of the Court of the learned IV Additional District & Sessions Judge, Chittoor, concerned to Crime No.130 of 2015 of Chittoor I Town Police Station, Chittoor District, registered for the offence punishable under Sections 302, 307, 120B, 301 read with 511 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 25-1(b) & 27 of the Indian Arms Act.

2. The petitioners in these Criminal Petitions are accused/A-3 and A-4 in Sessions Case No.110 of 2016 and both these petitions are filed for grant of bail, hence they are being heard and disposed of by this common order.

3. The case of the prosecution, in brief, is that, on 17.11.2015 at 11.45 a.m., while Smt. Katari Anuradha, Mayor of Chittoor Municipal Corporation and her husband Katari Mohan were in the Chambers of Mayor, Chittoor Municipal Corporation talking with Deputy Mayor and others, A-1 to A-4 along with some other accused entered into the Chambers of Mayor, A1 & A2 were wearing burqas, A-1 removed burqa and shot at her with a pistol on the frontal bone and she fell down instantaneously and thereafter A-1 and A-2 pointed out fire arms towards Katari Mohan (Deceased No.2) and then there was struggle between the persons present there and A-1 and A-2 and in that struggle the burkha of A-2 was removed. When V. Sateesh-L.W.1, who was in the Mayor’s chamber, came to the rescue of Katari Mohan, A-4 hacked L.W.1 on his back with dagger, while A-2 fired with his air pistol towards Katari Mohan (Deceased No.2). Meanwhile Katari Mohan ran towards the council conference hall, then, A-5, who was at the entry door of the Mayor’s P.A. room, alerted and shouted that Katari Mohan (Deceased No.2) was escaping. Then A-1 to A-5 chased Katari Mohan in the council conference hall. There, A-4 pushed down the said Katari Mohan and stabbed him with the dagger, while A-3 hacked on his neck 4 or 5 times with the sickle. After commission of the offence, A-1 to A-5 retreated towards the office of the Health Officer situated in the ground floor of the same building and escaped. After the incident, the injured were shifted to Government Hospital, Chittoor for treatment where the Mayor Katari Anuradha was declared brought dead and later Katari Mohan succumbed to injuries. Hence the above crime was registered against the petitioners and others.

4. One V. Satheesh, who is L.W.1/ injured witness/ de facto complainant in S.C.No.110 of 2016 got filed I.A.No.1 of 2022 in both these Criminal Petitions under Section 482 of CrPC to implead him as respondent No.2 to these Criminal Petitions. Both the petitions are allowed permitting the petitioner therein to come on record as respondent No.2.

5. Heard Sri D. Vijaya Chandra Reddy, learned counsel for the petitioners/ A-3 & A-4, Sri Sravan Kumar Naidana, learned Special Assistant Public Prosecutor for the respondent-State, and Sri Posani Venkateswarlu, learned senior counsel, for Sri P. Sai Surya Teja, learned counsel for the respondent No.2.

6. Sri D.Vijaya Chandra Reddy, learned counsel for the petitioners/A-3 & A-4, in elaboration, would submit that the petitioners are innocent of the crime and they were not at all present at the date and time of the alleged incident, but they were falsely implicated in this case due to political pressure. He would further submit that the investigation conducted by the police is biased, unfair and perfunctory. He would further submit that, the alleged incident is said to have been occurred at 12.30 p.m. witnessed by around 20 witnesses including Municipal officials, but the FIR came to be registered at 7.30 p.m. that too after the police reached the scene offence and conducted investigation. The delay in lodging FIR is a clear indication that it was outcome of consultations and confabulations by implicating the petitioners falsely