THE HONOURABLE SMT. JUSTICE JUVVADI SRIDEVI CRIMINAL PETITION No.16338 of 2024

O R D E R

This Criminal Petition is filed by petitioner-accused No.1 to quash the proceedings in FIR No.362 of 2024 on the file of Station House Officer, Ghanpur W Police Station, Warangal District. The offences alleged against the petitioner-accused are under Sections 272, 275 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (for short ‘BNS’)

(Previously Sections 272 and 273 of the Indian Penal Code).

02. Heard Sri Y.Bala Murali, learned counsel for petitioner and Sri Jithender Rao Veeramalla, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the State-respondent.

03. In Chidurala Shyamsubder v. State of Telangana, CRL.P.No.3731 of 2018 and batch dated 27.08.2018, a learned Single Judge of the High Court, by following the guidelines laid down by the Honourable Supreme Court in State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal, 1992 Supp (1) SCC 335, held that the Police are incompetent to take cognizance of the offences punishable under

Sections 45 and 59(1) of the Food Safety and Standards (FSS) Act, 2006, investigating into the offences along with other offences under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and filing charge sheet is grave illegality, as the Food Officer alone is competent to investigate and to file charge sheet following the Rules laid down under Sections 41 and 42 of FSS Act, whereas, in the present case, the Police have registered the crime for the offences under Sections 272, 273 and 336 read with Section 34 of IPC. Therefore, the said proceedings in FIR No.362 of 2024 against the petitioner are contrary to the principle held by the learned Single Judge of the High Court in Chidurala Shyamsubder (supra) and, accordingly, the same are liable to be quashed.

04. In view of the above submission, the present Criminal Petition is allowed in terms of Chidurala Shyamsubder (supra), and the proceedings in FIR No.362 of 2024 on the file of the Station House Officer, Ghanpur W Police Station, Warangal District, are hereby quashed. The petitioner- accused No.1 is at liberty to file appropriate application before the learned Court below for return of seized property. On such application being filed, the learned Court below is directed to release the seized property to the petitioner on proper acknowledgment.

As a sequel, pending miscellaneous applications, if any, shall stand closed.

______________________ JUVVADI SRIDEVI, J

Date: 09-DEC-2024

KHRM