File photo of Telangana High Court
Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Tuesday, July 1, came down heavily on Rachakonda police for meddling in civil disputes and observed that police stations had turned into “settlement addas.”
The petition filed by Pamu Sudershanam alleged that Nagole police had detained him from 10 am to 9:30 pm on June 19, coercing him to settle a civil dispute over a land by accepting Rs 55 lakh, reported DC.
The court summoned Rachakonda police commissioner G Sudheer Babu and the station house officer (SHO) of Nagole police station, questioning them as to why a criminal case had been registered against the petitioner when the dispute was only civil.
According to the DC report, three civil cases are pending in the court, along with injunction orders in place for a disputed plot in Krushi Nagar, Bandlaguda.
Despite the court orders, the petitioner’s property had reportedly been damaged by the opposite party.
When the petitioner approached the police regarding the issue, they refused to register a case, calling it a civil matter. However, the same police then detained the petitioner for allegedly submitting fake documents for the property.
However, the police defended themselves, saying they had only asked the petitioner to appear to serve a notice under Section 35 for a different FIR.
The court criticised the police for showing no regard for court orders and said that the police have no authority to determine the possession of land when court injunctions regarding it are already in place.
The court also suggested that the director general of police take steps in order to educate police officers on the Standard Operating Procedures (SoP) regarding police duties relating to civil disputes.
This post was last modified on July 2, 2025 6:53 pm