IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) MONDAY, THE TENTH DAY OF MARCH TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO.955 of 2008 Between: 1 Avala Muralidhar Rao, S/o. Suryanarayana Murthy, Ramakrishnapuram, Kakinada, East Godavari District. 2 Avala Rajeswari, W/o. Muralidhar Rao, Ramakrishnapuram, Kakinada, East Godavari District. ...PETITIONERS AND 1 The Superintendent of Police, East Godavari District at Kakinada. 2 Station House Officer, II Town Police Station, Kakinada, East Godavari District. ...RESPONDENTS Petition under Article 226 of the constitution of India praying that in the circumstances stated in the Affidavit filed herein the High Court will be pleased to issue writ of mandamus or any appropriate writ or order declaring the action of the respondents in interfering with petitioners' life and liberty as illegal, arbitrary and violative of principles of natural justice and also violation of Arts. 19 and 21 of constitution of India and for a consequential order direction the respondents not to interfere with the private life and liberty of the petitioners herein. Counsel for the Petitioners: MR.CH.DHANAMJAYA Counsel for the Respondents: GP FOR HOME The Court made the following: THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO.955 of 2008 ORDER: This Writ Petition is filed for a Writ of Mandamus to declare the action of the respondents in interfering with the petitioners’ life and liberty as illegal, arbitrary and violative of Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India. The petitioners also sought for a consequential direction to the respondents not to interfere with the private life and liberty of the petitioners. Heard Sri Srinivas, learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned Assistant Government Pleader for Home and perused the record. The petitioners allege that their son-Ranganath is accused in two criminal cases, namely, crime Nos.135 and 190 of 2007 of II Town Police Station, Kakinada, that he was arrested in connection with crime No.135 of 2007 and granted conditional bail by the learned IV Additional Sessions Judge, East Godavari District at Kakinada and that in connection with the other crime, the police are seeking to apprehend the petitioners’ son and that they have succeeded in doing so. The petitioners further alleged that respondent No.2 has been subjecting the petitioners to torture and ill treatment by insisting that they should reveal the whereabouts of their son, that the police personnel attached to respondent No.2 are frequently coming to their house at odd hours and giving out threats stating to produce their son to the Police Station. They mentioned several dates in the affidavit on which they were allegedly called to the Police Station and threatened that the police would use Third Degree Methods to elicit information about the whereabouts of their son. The respondents have not filed counter affidavit but the learned Assistant Government Pleader for Home read out the instructions received by him in the Court. According to him, the son of the petitioners is involved in a very serious crime of taking the nude photographs of a woman and threatened her to publish the photographs. He further submitted that he was enlarged on bail in connection with crime No.135 of 2007 and that in connection with crime No.190 of 2007, he is absconding. Learned Assistant Government Pleader for Home says that according to his instructions, respondent No.2 has not been violating the liberty or personal life of the petitioners and they were only called to the Police Station as a part of investigation in the crime. Having regard to the stand taken by respondent No.2, the Writ Petition is disposed of with a direction to respondent No.2 not to harass the petitioners in order to know the whereabouts of their son. It is the duty of the police to trace the whereabouts of a criminal and irrespective of the gravity of the offence, they cannot harass the parents of the accused. _______________________ (C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY, J) 10th March 2008 RRB