APHC010103682021 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH [3333]

AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction)

TUESDAY, THE FOURTH DAY OF FEBRUARY TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY FIVE PRESENT THE HONOURABLE SMT JUSTICE V.SUJATHA CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 1640/2021 Between:

Bodempudi Nageswara Rao ...PETITIONER/ACCUSED AND The State Of Andhra Pradesh ...RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT Counsel for the Petitioner/accused:

1. KAMBHAMPATI RAMESH BABU Counsel for the Respondent/complainant:

1. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR (AP)

The Court made the following Order:

This criminal petition is filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (for short “Cr.P.C.”) seeking to quash the proceedings initiated against the petitioner/A.1 in Crime No.02 of 2021 registered on the file of Vinukonda Excise Station, Vinukonda, Guntur District, for the offences punishable under Section 34 (a) of the A.P. Excise Act, 1968.

2. The petitioner herein is A.1. The Inspector, Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB), Vinukonda registered a case in Crime No.02 of 2021 for the offence punishable under Section 34 (a) of the A.P. Excise Act, 1968, against the petitioner herein and others basing on the mediator’s report. As per the mediator’s report, on 22.02.2021, as per the instructions of Additional Superintendent of SEB, the Inspector of SEB along with staff and mediators at about 5.00 a.m., have proceeded to Cheekateegalapalem X-Roads of Vinoukonda Mandal, they inspected the vehicles and noticed that two vehicles were coming from the direction of Tripurantakam town i.e., a car and a lorry, which appeared suspicious. The Inspector along with his staff intercepted the vehicles and questioned them, on which, they found 134 boxes of four Different Goa State liquor i.e., 1) 75 Card Board Boxes of Royal Stag Reserve Whisky each Box contraining 12 Quarts (each 750ml) 2) 19 card Board Boxes of Imperial Blue Whisky each Box containing 48 Nips (each 180 ml) 3) 30 Card Board Boxes of Mansion House Brandy each Box containing 48 Nips (each 180 ml) 4) 10 Card Board Boxes of Golden Ace Blue Fine Whisky each Box containing 48 Nips ( each 180 ml) in car they found 1) 2 card board boxes of Royal Stag Reserve Whisky each Box containing 12 Quarts (each 750 ml) and they confessed that at the instance of accused No.1, they used to transport the liquor from the Goa and Telangana State and to sell them at higher prices during the election time. On such confession, the police, SEB seized the bottles along with two vehicles i.e., Eicher Lorry Bearing Reg.No.AP 28 TC 9339 and ETIOS Car bearing No.AP 07 DE 7566 under the cover of mediator’s report. The Inspector, SEB along with mediators while proceeding towards Vinukonda town identified accused No.1 near Indian Petrol bunk carrying a polythene cover containing 48 nips of Imperial Blue Whisky bottles of Goa State on his motor bike bearing Reg.No.AP 39 EY 0015, the police, SEB drawn one sample bottle from the liquor bottles so as to send for chemical analysis, affixed identity slips containing the signature of the Enforcement Inspector, seized the case property and Motor Bike bearing Reg.No.AP 39 EY 0015. Basing on the said mediator’s report, the present crime has been registered against the petitioner/A.1.

3. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the respondents.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner, among other things, mainly challenges the validity of criminal proceedings launched against the petitioner on the ground of non-compliance with the procedure contemplated under Section 55 of the A.P. Excise Act, 1968. He submits that before conducting search, the respondent- police ought to have obtained warrant as per Section 54 of the A.P. Excise Act, 1968 or otherwise, ought to have followed the procedure contemplated under Section 55 of the A.P. Excise Act, 1968, which the complainant-police did not do so. He further submits that the failure on the part of the respondent-police in following the procedure contemplated under