The term 'adjoining station' in Section 160(1) Cr.P.C. can include a police station declared as a police station for an entire state, in relation to another police station declared as a police station for an entire state, when both states are adjoining each other and notifications under Section 2(s) of Cr.P.C. have been issued by the respective state governments.

ORDER :

1. In these two Writ Petitions the petitioners challenge the legal validity of the notices issued under Section 160 Cr.P.C. to them to appear before the Investigating Officer in Crime No.12 of 2021 of CID Police Station of the State of Andhra Pradesh, for the purpose of investigation in the said crime.

2. As the impugned notices under Section 160 Cr.P.C. were issued to the petitioners in the same crime i.e. Crime No.12 of 2021 of CID Police Station of the State of Andhra Pradesh, both the Writ Petitions were heard together and they are being disposed of by this common order.

3. Factual matrix of both the Writ Petitions lie in a narrow compass and may be stated as follows:

a) A case in Crime No.12 of 2021 was suo moto registered by the Crime Investigation Department Police Station of the State of Andhra Pradesh for the offences punishable under Sections 124- A, 153-A, 505 r/w.120-B of IPC. It was registered against Sri Kanumuru Raghu Rama Krishnam Raju, Member of Parliament of Narasapuram Lok Sabha Constituency of West Godavari District and ABN News Channel and TV5 News Channel. The said crime is now under investigation. Whileso, accused No.1 Sri Kanumuru Raghu Rama Krishnam Raju has filed a Writ Petition in this Court seeking quash of the said F.I.R. and sought for stay of investigation. This court ordered that the investigation shall go on. However, for the reasons stated in the said order, directed that if at all the Investigating Officer requires the presence of accused No.1 for interrogation or examination in connection with the said case that he shall be examined in Dilkusha Guest House in Hyderabad. Similarly, accused Nos.2 and 3 viz., ABN and TV5 news channels approached the Hon’ble Supreme Court under Article 32 of the Constitution of India being aggrieved by the registration of the said crime against the said two T.V. news channels. The Apex Court ordered not to take any coercive steps against the said two TV news channels and their personnel. Thus, there is no order passed staying the investigation in any of the proceedings initiated by the three accused in the said crime. Therefore, the investigation is going on.

(b) Whileso, during the course of investigation, the Investigating Officer issued the impugned notices under Section 160 Cr.P.C. to the petitioners in these two writ petitions, who are the employees of the said two TV news channels i.e. ABN and TV5 news channels, directing them to appear before the Investigating Officer for the purpose of investigation in the said crime.

(c) The petitioners now challenge the legal validity of the impugned notices issued under Section 160 Cr.P.C. on the ground that the Police Officer is authorized or empowered under Section 160 Cr.P.C. to summon a person only when the said person is residing within the territorial limits of the police station of the said officer or residing within the territorial limits of any adjoining station as per the language employed in Section 160 Cr.P.C. and he is not empowered to summon a person who is residing beyond the limits of his police station or the adjoining station. It is their specific version that the crime was registered by the CID police of the State of Andhra Pradesh and the petitioners have been residing in Hyderabad in the State of Telangana and as such, they are not residing within the limits of the C.I.D. Police Station of the State of Andhra Pradesh or within the limits of the adjoining station. Therefore, they seek to impeach the notices issued by the CID Police of the State of Andhra Pradesh on the ground that they have no jurisdiction or competence to issue any such notices under Section 160 Cr.P.C. to the petitioners, who are residing beyond the territorial limits of the said Police Station or the adjoining station and thereby prayed to declare the impugned notices as illegal and without jurisdiction and consequently, prayed