IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AT HYDERABAD THE HONOURABLE SMT. JUSTICE K. SUJANA CRIMINAL PETITION No.1392 of 2026 DATE : 18.02.2026 Between:

Sri Sreetharan Murthy.

…Petitioner/Accused No.1 AND The State of Telangana Represented by The Station House Officer, Central Crime Police Station, Through Public Prosecutor, High Court for the State of Telangana at Hyderabad.

…Respondent

ORDER:

This Criminal Petition is filed before this Court seeking to modify/set aside the condition Nos.2 and 3 of the bail order passed in Crl.M.P.No.2293 of 2025 dated 28.08.2025 and consequently direct the XII Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Court, Nampally to return petitioner/Accused No.1 passport to him and permit the petitioner/Accused No.1 to travel abroad for his business purposes.

2. The brief facts of the case are that the petitioner purchased gold ornaments from Respondent No. 2 during March–April 2025 for Rs.5,74,38,078/- and issued post-dated cheques for Rs.3,00,01,967/-. Upon presentation, the said cheques were dishonoured with the endorsement “payment stopped by drawer.” A statutory notice under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 was issued by respondent No.2, followed by registration of Crime No. 87/2025 at CCS, Hyderabad, for offences punishable under the Sections 316(5), 318(4) r/w 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. It is further submitted that the petitioner was arrested on 07.08.2025 and remanded to judicial custody by the learned XII Addl. CJM, Nampally and later granted regular bail vide Crl.M.P.2293/2025 dated 28.08.2025 under Section 480 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 subject to conditions including passport deposit (seized at arrest) and no foreign travel sans permission and the same was complied by the petitioner by regularly reporting to The Station House Officer as per the order dated 28.08.2025. Aggrieved thereby, the present Criminal Petition is filed by the petitioner.

3. Heard Mr. Vadeendra Joshi, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner as well as Sri M. Ramachandra Reddy, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the respondent-State.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that while granting bail, the learned Trial Court imposed conditions directing the petitioner herein to deposit his passport and restraining him from leaving the country without prior permission of the trial Court. It is further submitted that the petitioner is a businessman, who is required to travel abroad frequently for business purposes and the conditions imposed by the trial Court is causing serious prejudice to the petitioner. It is further submitted that the petitioner is ready and willing to co-operate with the Investigating Authority as well as the trial Court. It is further submitted that the petitioner is ready to give undertaking before the trial Court that he will appear before the concerned authorities as and when his presence is required and will abide by the conditions, if any, imposed by this Court.

5. Considering the submissions made by the learned counsel for the petitioner and upon perusal of the material available on record, this Court is of the considered view that, the petitioner herein is directed to file an appropriate application before the trial Court whenever there is a requirement for him to leave the country and seek temporary withdrawal of his passport from the concerned Court. Upon receipt of such application, the trial Court shall consider and dispose of the same on its own merits, subject to appropriate conditions.

6. With the above observations, the Criminal petition is disposed of.

Miscellaneous applications, if any pending, shall stand closed.

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K. SUJANA, J Date: 18.02.2026 SRK THE HONOURABLE SMT JUSTICE K. SUJANA CRIMINAL PETITION No.1392 of 2026 Date:18.02.2026 SRK