HC orders immediate release of YSRCP functionary for faulty arrest procedure

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh high court on Thursday ordered the immediate release of YSRCP functionary Turaka Kishore, who was arrested in an attempted murder case. The court found fault with the police for not following the procedure of arrest and also with the mechanical remand given by the trial court.Kishore's wife Turaka Surekha moved the high court with a habeas corpus petition seeking to produce her husband before the court, alleging that the police illegally detained him. Surekha's counsel argued that police did not inform Kishore and his family members about the grounds and reasons for the arrest, which is mandatory according to law.Special govt pleader, T Vishnu Teja, said police, at the time of the arrest, issued notices under relevant sections to Kishore explaining the grounds of arrest, but he rejected the notices. He further said that police followed due procedure, but the accused and his family members did not cooperate with them.The high court bench, comprising of Justices R Raghunandan Rao and TCD Sekhar, observed that there was no mention in the remand report that Kishore denied to receive the notices. The police also did not place any material on record in support of the claim. The remand order by the magistrate was also silent on the aspect of rejection of notices by the accused.The HC bench further noted that there have been several judgments by the Supreme Court which categorically stated that the arrest of an accused is void if police did not follow due procedure while arresting the accused, and sending such accused to judicial remand even for a minute is illegal. Directing the jail authorities to release Kishore immediately, the high court directed the police to file a counter affidavit in the matter.