Bail granted under stringent conditions based on non-commercial quantity and duration of judicial custody, ensuring investigation integrity.

i IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI TUESDAY, THE NINTEENTH DAY OF AUGUST, ssa:-;.

TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY FIVE ■3^

■'sa.

:PRESENT:

/

THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE Y. LAKSHMANA RAO CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 8377 OF 2025 Between:

1. Kavvaji Pavan Kumar, S/o K.Raja, aged 26 years, R/o Chintakomma Dinne Village & Mandal, Y.S.R. Kadapa (Kadapa) District.

2. Shaik Inthiyaz, S/o S.Rahamathulla, aged 25 years, R/o D.No.

57/227-10-2, Shastri Nagar, Akkayapalli, Kadapa Town, Y.S.R. Kadapa District.

...Petitioner/Accused Nos.2 & 5 AND The State of Andhra Pradesh, Station House Officer, Prohibition and Excise Station, Kadapa, Rep by its Public Prosecutor, High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravathi.

...Respondent Petition under Sections 480 & 483 of BNSS , 2023, is filed praying that in the circumstances stated in the grounds filed in support of the Criminal Petition, the High Court may be pleased to grant Regular Bail to the Petitioners by enlarging them on bail in Crime No.51 of 2025 of Prohibition and Excise Station, Kadapa, Kadapa District.

The petition coming on for hearing, upon perusing the Petition and the grounds filed in support thereof and upon hearing the arguments of Sri Matada Yuvasiva Swamy, Advocate for the Petitioner and of Public Prosecutor for Respondent, the Court made the following

2 i The Court made the following:

ORDER:

The Criminal Petition has been filed under Sections 437 and 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for brevity ‘the Cr.P.C .’)/ Sections 480 and 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for brevity ‘the BNSS ’), seeking to enlarge the petitioners/Accused Nos.2 and 5 on bail in Cr.No.51 of 2025 of Prohibition & Excise Station Kadapa District, registered against the petitioners/Accused Nos.2 and 5 herein for the offences punishable under Section 8 (c) read with 20(b)(ii)(B) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for brevity ‘the NDPS Act’).

2. The case of the prosecution is that on 18.07.2025, at about 01.00 P.M., the Prohibition & Excise Inspector, P&ESI, Prohibition & Excise Station, Kadapa, along with the Inspector, ESTF, Prohibition & Excise, YSR Kadapa, and his staff, at about 1.5 kms south of Chinthamommadinne Village and Mandal, YSR Kadapa District, arrested Accused Nos.2 to 7, while Accused No.1 is yet to be arrested, and seized 2.00 kgs of ganja worth Rs.40,000/-, one black colour TVS Ntorq scooter, one yellow Bajaj auto, one blue colour Scooty Pep, one KTM Duke, and four mobile phones from their possession under cover of panchanama.

3. Mr.Yuvasiva Swamy, the learned counsel for the petitioners contend that the petitioners are innocent of the alleged offence and have been falsely implicated by the police, It is further submitted that the petitioners are the sole earning members of the family and, therefore, their incarceration would cause undue hardship to their dependents. The petitioners undertake to strictly adhere to any conditions that may be imposed by this Court. In light of the foregoing submissions, learned counsel prays that the present petition be allowed in the interest of justice.

4. Per contra, Ms.P.Akhila Naidu, the learned Assistant Public Prosecutor vehemently opposed the grant of bail to the petitioners, submitting that the investigation is still underway and several material witnesses remain to be examined. It is contended that if the petitioners are released on bail at this stage, there is a strong likelihood that they may abscond, thereby hampering the ongoing investigation and evading the process of law. In view of the foregoing submissions, it is urged that the petition be dismissed.

5. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and t