IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AT HYDERABAD THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE J.SREENIVAS RAO CRIMINAL PETITION No.15770 of 2025 Date: 01.12.2025 Between:

Qudsiya Mumtaz and three others ...petitioners AND The State of Andhra Pradesh, Represented by its Public Prosecutor High Court for the State of Telangana, At Hyderabad and another ...respondents

Order

This Criminal Petition is filed seeking to quash the proceedings in FIR No.400 of 2025, on the file of the Kachiguda Police Station, Hyderabad, wherein the petitioners were arrayed as accused Nos.1 to 4, for the offences punishable under Sections 115(2) and 305(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhitha, 2023 (for short ‘BNS’).

2. Heard Mr.Ankarla Dheeraj, learned counsel for the petitioners and Mr.Jitendar Rao Veeramalla, learned Additional Public Prosecutor that the offences levelled against the petitioners are punishable with an imprisonment of less than seven years. He further submitted that the Investigating Officer, without following the procedure contemplated under Section 41-A of Cr.P.C./Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short, ‘BNSS’), as well as the guidelines formulated by the Hon’ble Apex C