HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE ASHUTOSH MOHUNTA WRIT PETITION No. 17746 OF 2011 . DATED 20th July, 2011. BETWEEN Kanna Nagabhushanam and ors …Petitioners And The Superintendent of Police, Guntur District and ors. ….Respondents. HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE ASHUTOSH MOHUNTA WRIT PETITION No. 17746 of 2011 ORDER: This Writ Petition is filed seeking a direction to the respondent authorities to discontinue the rowdy sheet opened and being continued against the petitioners on the file of the Station House Officer, Adavuladeevi Police Station, Guntur District. The petitioners claim to be the residents of Ariespet in Nizampatnam Mandal of Guntur District and are agriculturists by profession. It is stated that the petitioners have been falsely implicated in the cases due to political motivation at the behest of the members of the ruling party in as much as they are symponizers of the rival party. The criminal cases registered against the petitioners in the earlier point of time ended in acquittal and no cases are either registered thereafter or pending against the petitioners. It is stated that due to continuation of the rowdy sheets, the police are frequently calling the petitioners to the police station in the absence of registration of any crime and without there being any valid reason and making them to sit in the police station hours together. It is further stated that since the petitioners are not involved in any other case after their acquittal from the earlier cases, the continuation of the rowdy sheets against them is illegal and arbitrary. Counter affidavit is filed by the fourth respondent denying the allegations made in the writ affidavit. It is stated that the petitioners are involved in Cr.No. 51 of 2002 punishable under Sections 498-A, 324 and 506 IPC, which was tried by the learned II Additional Munsiff Magistrate, Repally vide CC No. 352 of 2002 and acquitted them of all charges, and, Cr.No. 17 of 2005 punishable under Sections 307, 109 and 120-B, which ended in acquittal on 23.3.2006 having been tried by the learned Additional Assistant Sessions Judge, Tenali, Guntur District under SC.No. 536 of 2005. It is further stated that as of now, no cases are pending against the petitioners. It is further stated that pursuant to the orders dated 25.5.2005 of the Sub Divisional Police Officer, Bapatla, Guntur District, rowdy sheets are opened against the petitioners and are being renewed from time to time and lastly extended till 31.12.2011. Heard the learned Counsel appearing on either side. Perused the case file. On several occasion, this Court had to deal with cases covered by Police Standing Order 742 which deals with opening of rowdy sheets. As per Police Standing Order 742, rowdy sheets can be opened and continued against persons who habitually commit, attempt to commit or abet the Commission of, Offences involving a breach of the peace. The expression 'habitually' means 'repeatedly' or 'persistently'. It implies a thread of continuity stringing together similar repetitive acts. Repeated, persistent and similar, but not isolated, individual and dissimilar acts are necessary to justify an inference of habit. A single act or omission cannot therefore be characterised as a habitual act or omission. If the above settled principle is applied to the facts of the present case, I am of the considered opinion that the petitioners are not at all the habitual offenders so as to open and continue the rowdy sheets against them in as much as after their acquittal from the earlier criminal cases booked against them in the year 2005, they are not involved in any other case. Trite to state, unless there is adequate material as regards commission of offence or attempt to commit an offence opening of rowdy sheet against a person and continuing the same is illegal. Even mere suspicion or apprehension would not be a criteria for opening rowdy sheet against a person. In the absence of any conviction recorded in the crimes registered against the petitioners and in the absence of any fresh cases registered against them after 2005, it cannot be said that the petitioners are habitual offenders so as to continue the rowdy sheet opened against them. For the foregoing reasons, the Writ Petition is allowed and the rowdy sheets opened against the petitioners and being continued on the file of the fourth respondent are hereby quashed. There shall be no order as to costs. ------------------------------------ -- JUSTICE ASHUTOSH MOHUNTA Dated 20th July, 2011. Msnro