VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Monday granted interim relief to Bihar cadre IPS officer Meghavat Sunil Kumar Naik in a case registered by Guntur’s Nagarapalem police following allegations of custodial torture made by former Narsapur MP and current Assembly Deputy Speaker Kanumuru Raghurama Krishnam Raju.
While hearing the matter on Monday, Justice Venkata Jyotirmayi Pratap issued interim orders directing the investigating police not to take any harsh action against the IPS officer. The court also instructed the police to carry out the investigation strictly in accordance with the law.
At the same time, the High Court made it clear that Sunil Kumar Naik must cooperate with the ongoing investigation. The court directed him to appear before the investigating officer every day between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. until the next hearing.
It may be recalled that Bihar cadre IPS officer Sunil Kumar Naik approached the High Court seeking anticipatory bail in the case registered by Nagarapalem police in Guntur. His counsel, senior advocate K Parameshwar, argued that the petitioner was not initially named as an accused in the case registered based on Raghurama Krishnam Raju’s complaint.
His counsel further added that Naik’s name was later added as the seventh accused after a change in government, allegedly due to political reasons. He also presented the argument that Naik’s role was limited to conducting a preliminary inquiry based on instructions from higher officials and submitting a report. “Naik had no involvement in the arrest, custody, or alleged torture of Raghurama Krishnam Raju,” his counsel maintained.
However, representing the police, senior advocates Siddharth Luthra and Siddharth Agarwal argued that the anticipatory bail petition was not maintainable since Naik had already been arrested and produced before a magistrate in Bihar.
After hearing both sides, the court observed that absence of a name in the FIR does not exempt a person from investigation and stressed that the officer must fully cooperate with the probe. After hearing the arguments of both parties, the judge posted the matter to March 9. On the other hand, the Guntur Mobile Court rejected the petition filed by the Nagarampalem police seeking to issue a non-bailable warrant against Sunil Kumar Naik.