Vennupusa Charan Teja Reddy, v. The State Of Telangana,

IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA

AT HYDERABAD THE HONOURABLE SMT. JUSTICE K. SUJANA CRIMINAL PETITION No.5242 OF 2026 DATE : 27.04.2026 Between :

Vennupusa Charan Teja Reddy ...

Petitioner/A.5 And The State of Telangana ... Respondent/Complainant : ORDER :

This Criminal Petition is filed praying this Court to enlarge the petitioner on bail who is arrayed as accused No.5 in Cr.No.55 of 2026 of Medchal Police Station, Cyberabad District. The offences alleged against the petitioner are under Section 8(c) r/w.20(b)(ii)(B), 21(c), 27 and 29 of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (for short 'NDPS Act'). 2.

The brief facts of the case are that on 20.01.2026, while performing routine duties, the Sub-Inspector of Police, Medchal Police Station, received credible information that illegal sale of

hashish oil and dry ganja was being carried on at H.No.170, Metro Landmark, near Medchal Railway Station. Believing the information to be true, he along with his team proceeded to the said premises and conducted a raid. During the raid, three persons namely Akula Mithra Chaitanya @ Sunny, Mukkisa Shushanth Reddy, and Ammula Trinesh were found inside the room. On enquiry, the accused allegedly confessed that they had procured hashish oil and dry ganja from Vijayawada for illegal sale to students and others in the Medchal area. During the search, the police seized 1.127 kg of hashish oil and 6.101 kg of dry ganja and other material. The seized articles and the accused were taken into custody and produced before the competent authority for further legal action. Hence, a case was registered against the accused for the above offences. 3.

Heard Ms. A. Chandravathi Reddy, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri M.Ramachandra Reddy, learned Additional Public Prosecutor appearing on behalf of the respondent-State.

4.

The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner, who is arrayed as Accused No.5, was arrested on 24.02.2026 and has been in judicial custody since then, while

Accused Nos.1, 2 and 6 were arrested earlier on 20.01.2026. The petitioner is innocent and has been falsely implicated only on the basis of alleged confessional statements, without any specific overt act, direct allegation, or legally admissible material connecting him with the offence. No contraband was recovered from his possession or at his instance, except an IQOO mobile phone allegedly used for communication, which by itself does not constitute an offence under the NDPS Act. It is further submitted that the petitioner had no role in the alleged raid dated 20.01.2026, his custodial interrogation is no longer required, and his continued detention amounts to unnecessary pre-trial punishment. Learned counsel further submits that petitioner is a meritorious 3rd Year B.Tech student of Malla Reddy University, with an excellent academic record, and his semester/final examinations are scheduled in the month of April;

therefore, his continued custody would seriously prejudice and irreparably affect his educational career and future prospects. Learned counsel also contended that petitioner has no criminal antecedents, is not a habitual offender, and does not pose any threat to society and further there is no possibility of tampering with evidence or influencing witnesses, as the main seizure of 1.127 Kgs of Hashish Oil and

6.101 Kgs of Ganja was already seized on 20.01.2026 from the premises where Accused Nos.1, 2 and 6 were present. The petitioner undertakes to abide by any conditions imposed by this Court. Hence, prayed this Court to grant regular bail to the petitioner.

5.

On the other hand, learned Additional Public Prosecutor vehemently opposed bail contending that the contraband involved is a commercial quantity and that investigation is still pending. If petitioner is released on bail, he may not cooperate with the investigation. As the contraband is a huge commercial quantity in view of rigor of Section 37 of NDPS Act, petitioner is not entitled to bail and prayed to dismiss this petition. 6.

Having considered the submissions made by the learned counsel for the petitioner as well as the learned Additional Public Prosecutor, and upon perusal of the material available on record, this Court notes that the petitioner is arrayed as Accused No.5 and has been in judicial custody since 24.02.2026. Though the prosecution alleges involvement of the petitioner in an offence involving commercial quantity of contraband and opposes bail by invoking the rigor under Section 37 of the NDPS Act, it is brought to the notice of this

Court that the petitioner is a 3rd Year B.Tech student of Malla Reddy University and that his semester/final examinations are scheduled from 28.04.2026. Therefore, this Court is of the view that the educational career of a student should not be unnecessarily jeopardized and petitioner may be granted bail for a limited period to enable him to appear for the examinations. At this stage, without expressing any opinion on merits of the case and taking into consideration the facts and circumstances of the case, this Court deems it appropriate to grant interim bail to the petitioner for a limited period i.e., from 27.04.2026 to 15.05.2026 subject to the following conditions : i.

The petitioner shall execute a personal bond for a sum of Rs.25,000/- (Rupees Twenty Five Thousand only) with two sureties for a like sum each to the satisfaction of the Superintendent, Cherlapalli Jail, Medchal Malkajgiri District.

ii.

The petitioner shall surrender before the concerned jail authority on 16.05.2026 by 10.00 A.M., without fail.

iii.

The petitioner shall not influence witnesses, shall not tamper with evidence, and shall not involve himself in any offence during the interim bail period.

iv.

If the petitioner fails to surrender before the concerned jail authority on the stipulated date and time, they are at liberty to take steps in accordance with law.

7.

Accordingly, the Criminal Petition is partly allowed. Miscellaneous applications, if any pending, shall stand closed.

_______________ K. SUJANA, J Date: 27.04.2026 Rds

THE HONOURABLE SMT JUSTICE K. SUJANA CRIMINAL PETITION No.5242 OF 2026 Date: 27.04.2026 Rds