Several persons accused in the attack on the TDP headquarters have approached the High Court challenging the Vijayawada Police Commissioner’s September 22 proceedings directing the opening of rowdy sheets against them. Bachu Muralikrishna of Vijayawada and others filed petitions on Tuesday seeking quashing of the proceedings.
They claimed they had no connection with the attack and alleged that they were implicated in a false case as part of political vendetta. The petitioners contended that rowdy sheets could be opened only against persons repeatedly involved in criminal activities and that a single pending case could not be the basis for classifying them as rowdies.
They argued that being summoned to a police station every week would violate their fundamental rights and personal liberty. They submitted that the criminal case against them was still pending and that the jurisdictional magistrate had not yet taken cognisance of the charge sheet filed by the police.
They further argued that, in a case registered under Section 307 of the IPC, additional circumstances such as repeated involvement in offences or activities affecting public order and public safety were required for opening a rowdy sheet. Referring to Supreme Court’s Puttaswamy judgment, the petitioners said privacy was a fundamental right and that continuous surveillance could infringe personal liberty