Vithana Kalpana, v. State Of Telangana
IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA
AT HYDERABAD THE HONOURABLE SMT. JUSTICE K. SUJANA CRIMINAL PETITION No.6435 of 2026 DATE: 05.05.2026 BETWEEN:
Vithana Kalpana ..... Petitioner/A.4 And State of Telangana, Rep. by Public Prosecutor, High Court for the State of Telangana, at Hyderabad.
..... Respondent/Respondent
ORDER
This Criminal Petition is filed under Section 482 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short 'BNSS') for grant of prearrest bail to the petitioner, who is arrayed as accused No.4 in Crime No.145 of 2026 before the Borabanda Police Station, Hyderabad, registered for the offence punishable under Section 80 of BNS read with 3(5) of BNS.
2.
The case of the prosecution is that on 13.03.2026, the defacto complainant, who is the owner of the house, lodged a report
before the police stating that A-1 along with his family members, including his wife (deceased), children, and parents, were residing as tenants in the second-floor portion of his house on a monthly rent of Rs.10,000/-. It is alleged that A-1 was working as a helper in the Electricity Department and his mother (A-2) was working as housekeeping staff in Reddy Labs, while his father (A-3) was suffering from kidney-related ailments and undergoing dialysis since 2019. On 13.03.2026, a quarrel took place between A-1 and his wife Satyaveni over petty issues, and they did not speak to each other throughout the day. At about 6:00 p.m.
, A-1 along with his mother took A-3 to ESI Hospital for dialysis, and after returning home, they found Satyaveni hanging from a ceiling fan with a saree tied around her neck, while their daughter was found crying and their son was found dead. Upon receiving information, the de-facto complainant visited the house and observed the same, and alleged that due to the quarrel in the morning, the deceased had committed suicide after killing her son and attempting to kill her daughter. Based on the said report, a case was initially registered under Sections 103(1) of BNS and 194 of BNSS, and later altered to Section 80 read with 3(5) of BNS.
3.
Heard Sri P. Prabhakar Reddy, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioners as well as Sri Ramachandra Reddy,
learned Additional Public Prosecutor appearing on behalf of the respondent - State.
4.
Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the petitioner is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the present case and that the complaint and witness statements only disclose a petty matrimonial quarrel between the A-1 and the deceased, and there are no specific allegations of dowry demand or harassment "soon before death," which is a mandatory ingredient to attract the offence under Section 80 of the BNS. He further submitted that the marriage of the petitioner was solemnized in the year 2010 and, ever since, she has been residing with her husband separately and has never lived in the house of accused No.1 and the deceased. He further submitted that the petitioner is ready and willing to cooperate with the investigation. Therefore, he prayed the Court to grant pre-arrest bail to the petitioner by allowing the criminal petition.
5.
On the other hand, learned Additional Public Prosecutor opposed the petition by contending that the allegations against the petitioner are grave and serious in nature and the petitioner may influence witnesses or tamper with evidence if granted anticipatory bail and that the investigation is still pending and, therefore,
granting pre-arrest bail to the petitioner, at this stage, does not arise and prayed the Court to dismiss the criminal petition. 6.
In light of the submissions made by both learned counsel and upon perusal of the material available on record, it is evident that the petitioner is arrayed as accused No.4, being the sister-inlaw of the deceased and sister of accused No.1. The allegations against accused Nos.2 to 4 are omnibus in nature, to the effect that all the accused subjected the deceased to harassment. However, the learned counsel for the petitioner contended that the petitioner was married long back and has been residing separately with her husband, away from accused No.1 and the deceased. Except for such general and omnibus allegations, there are no specific accusations attributed to the petitioner, nor is there any material indicating her direct involvement or proximity in the alleged acts of harassment.
It is also brought to the notice of the Court that the petitioner is having her own family and is residing at a distant place. Considering the overall facts and circumstances of the case and the nature of allegations against the petitioner, this Court deems it appropriate to grant pre-arrest bail to the petitioner, subject to the following conditions: i.
The petitioner shall surrender before the Station House Officer, Borabanda Police
Station, Hyderabad within two weeks from today, and on such surrender, the said Station House Officer shall release her on bail on executing a personal bond for Rs.25,000/- with two sureties, for the like sum each.
ii.
The petitioner shall abide by the other conditions stipulated in Section 482(2) of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 and co-operate with the Investigating Officer in investigating the case.
iii.
The petitioner shall appear before the concerned Investigating Officer on every Wednesday between 09:00 a.m, and 05:00 p.m. for a period of eight (8) weeks or till filing of charge sheet whichever is earlier, for the purpose of investigation, and thereafter, as and when required.
7.
Accordingly, this Criminal Petition is allowed. Miscellaneous applications, if any pending, shall stand closed.
_______________ K. SUJANA, J Date: 05.05.2026 SS
THE HONOURABLE SMT JUSTICE K. SUJANA CRIMINAL PETITION No.6435 of 2026 Date: 05.05.2026 SS