Rathlavath Ramesh, 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.8052 of 2026 DATE: 22.06.2026 Between:
Rathlavath Ramesh .... Petitioner/Accused No.1 AND The State of Telangana, Rep. by its Public Prosecutor for Home, High Court for the State of Telangana, Hyderabad and another.
.... Respondent/Complainant :O R D E R:
This Criminal Petition is filed seeking the Court to enlarge the petitioner on bail, who are arrayed as accused in Crime No.358 of 2026 of Alwal Police Station, Malkajgiri District, registered for the offences punishable under Sections 80 read with 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS).
2.
The brief facts of the case are that on 17.04.2026, de-facto complainant, who is the mother of the deceased, lodged a report
before the Police stating that her daughter was married to Rathlavath Ramesh, aged about 25 years, an Auto Driver, on 28.04.2024 in an arranged marriage. At the time of marriage, an amount of Rs.6,00,000/- and household articles were given as dowry. After the marriage, they initially resided at Charminar and, for the last four months, had been residing at Venkatapuram, Alwal. For the past few months, the husband, Ramesh, along with his parents, Chilukamma and Balu Naik, and his younger brother, Chintu, allegedly harassed Sangeetha by demanding additional dowry in the form of a car, abusing her in filthy language and mentally harassing her by stating that she had not conceived even after two years of marriage and asking her to leave the house. On 16.04.
2026, the deceased called her over the phone and informed her that her husband and his brother were abusing and beating her. Later, on 17.04.2026 at about 07:30 AM, the complainant received a video call through her daughter's phone, showing that her daughter had hanged herself from the ceiling fan with a chunni. Thereafter, her husband shifted her to Yashoda Hospital, Secunderabad, where the doctors declared her dead. As such, she requested the police to take necessary action. Based on the said complaint, the police registered a case for the abovementioned offence.
3.
Heard Sri Bonthu Lokesh Phanindra Reddy, learned counsel representing Sri M. Keshav Yadav, learned counsel on record for the petitioner as well as Sri D. Arun Kumar, learned Additional Public Prosecutor appearing for Respondent -State.
4.
Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the petitioner is innocent of the said allegations and has been falsely implicated in the present case. He further submitted that the petitioner has been in judicial custody since 22.04.2026 and that the substantial part of the investigation has already been completed. He further submitted that the other accused have been granted bail by the trial Court and that in fact, the deceased was a mentally challenged person and that no such acts of harassment were committed by the petitioner. Therefore, he prayed the Court to grant bail to the petitioner by allowing this criminal petition. 5.
On the other hand, the learned Additional Public Prosecutor opposed the submissions made by the learned counsel for the petitioner, contending that the allegations against the petitioner are serious and grave in nature and that the deceased committed suicide within two years of her marriage due to the harassment made by the petitioner and that the investigation is still in progress. Therefore, granting bail to the petitioner, at this stage, does not arise and prayed the Court to dismiss the Criminal Petition.
6.
In the light of the submissions made by both the learned counsel and upon perusal of the material available on record, it appears that the petitioner has been in judicial custody since 22.04.2026. As per the remand case diary, the prosecution witnesses, namely LWs.1 to 21, including the Investigating Officer, have already been examined. Considering the overall facts and circumstances of the case, the stage of investigation and the period of incarceration undergone by the petitioner, this Court is inclined to grant bail to the petitioner/accused, 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 learned X Additional Judicial Magistrate of First Class at Medchal.
ii.
The petitioner shall appear before the concerned SHO at 11:00 a.m., on every Monday 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.
iii.
The petitioner shall abide by the conditions stipulated in Section 437(3) of Cr.P.C.
(presently, Section 480(3) of the BNSS).
7.
Accordingly, this Criminal Petition is allowed. Miscellaneous applications, if any pending, shall stand closed. _______________ K. SUJANA, J Date: 22.06.2026 SS
THE HONOURABLE SMT JUSTICE K. SUJANA CRIMINAL PETITION No.8052 of 2026 Date: 22.06.2026 SS