The FIR
A case under Section 166, 167, 217, 120 (b) IPC read with SS 34, 35, 36 & 37 IPC Section 3(1)(f)(g) of SC and ST (PoA) Act 1989, Sec 7 of AP assigned land (POT) Act 1977 registered on 12th March 2021 at Police Station CID Amaravathi, Mangalagiri, Guntur.
A complaint against Former CM Chandra Babu Naidu and former Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban development Ponguru Narayana and other unmentioned officials formed basis of FIR which says: On 24th February 2021at 11.00 hours Alla Ramakrishna Reddy MLA of Mangalagiri Constituency stated that some farmers represented to him that some of the influenced persons of the then Government have cheated them by taking away their lands illegally, fraudulently by keeping the innocent peasants under confusion and fear of insecurity about their lands. This set of middlemen who were the part of the conspiracy by making false representation that the Government was going to take away their assigned lands without giving any compensation. On that complainant verified the GOS issued by the Government and found several irregularities were committed by the respondents causing irreparable loss to the SC and ST community people and weaker sections and got wrongful gains and requested to take necessary legal actions. On that the Addl DGP CID AP gave instructions to S Surya Bhaskar Rao DSP RO CID Vijayawada to conduct preliminary enquiry and based on which report was submitted on 12th March 2021 stating that inquiry revealed a cognisable offence was made out. A case was registered, and necessary legal action was initiated, the FIR says.
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SC & ST Act
The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989, Section 3 (1)(f) defined an offence: wrongfully occupies or cultivates any land, owned by, or in the possession of or allotted to, or notified by any competent authority to be allotted to, a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe, or gets such land transferred.
The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989, Section 3 (1) (g) defined another offence: wrongfully dispossesses a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe from his land or premises or interferes with the enjoyment of his rights, including forest rights, over any land or premises or water or irrigation facilities or destroys the crops or takes away the produce therefrom.
Explanation to these two provisions says: For the purposes of clause (f) and this clause, the expression ―wrongfully‖ includes— (A) against the person‘s will; (B) without the person‘s consent; (C) with the person‘s consent, where such consent has been obtained by putting the person, or any other person in whom the person is interested in fear of death or of hurt; or (D) fabricating records of such land;
For these offences the wrongdoer “shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to five years and with fine”.
Assigned Lands Act
Andhra Pradesh (Prohibition of Transfer) of Assigned Lands Act, 1977 section 7:(1) Whoever acquires any assigned land in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (2) of Section 3 shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees or with both.
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Provisions of Indian Penal Code
Indian Penal Code, Section 166. Public servant disobeying law, with intent to cause injury to any person.Whoever, being a public servant, knowingly disobeys any direction of the law as to the way in which he is to conduct himself as such public servant, intending to cause, or knowing it to be likely that he will, by such disobedience, cause injury to any person, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.
Indian Penal Code, Section 167. Public servant framing an incorrect document with intent to cause injury. Whoever, being a public servant, and being, as such public servant, charged with the preparation or translation of any document, frames or translates that document in a manner which he knows or believes to be incorrect, intending thereby to cause or knowing it to be likely that he may thereby cause injury to any person, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.
Indian Penal Code Section: 34. Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention: When a criminal act is done by several persons in furtherance of the common intention of all, each of such persons is liable for that act in the same manner as if it were done by him alone.]
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Indian Penal Code Section 35. When such an act is criminal by reason of its being done with a criminal knowledge or intention,Whenever an act, which is criminal only by reason of its being done with a criminal knowledge or intention, is done by several persons, each of such persons who joins in the act with such knowledge or intention is liable for the act in the same manner as if the act were done by him alone with that knowledge or intention.
Indian Penal Code, Section 36. Effect caused partly by act and partly by omission: Wherever the causing of a certain effect, or an attempt to cause that effect, by an act or by an omission, is an offence, it is to be understood that the causing of that effect partly by an act and partly by an omission is the same offence.
Indian Penal Code Section 37. Co-operation by doing one of several acts constituting an offence, When an offence is committed by means of several acts, whoever intentionally co-operates in tile commission of that offence by doing any one of those acts, either singly or jointly with any other person, commits that offence.
Indian Penal Code, Section 120B. Punishment of criminal conspiracy: (1) Whoever is a party to a criminal conspiracy to commit an offence punishable with death, 51[imprisonment for life] or rigorous imprisonment for a term of two years or upwards, shall, where no express provision is made in this Code for the punishment of such a conspiracy, be punished in the same manner as if he had abetted such offence.
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(2) Whoever is a party to a criminal conspiracy other than a criminal conspiracy to commit an offence punishable as aforesaid shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term not exceeding six months, or with fine or with both.]
Indian Penal Code, Section 217. Public servant disobeying direction of law with intent to save person from punishment or property from forfeiture, Whoever, being a public servant, knowingly disobeys any direction of the law as to the way in which he is to conduct himself as such public servant, intending thereby to save, or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby save, any person from legal punishment, or subject him to a less punishment than that to which he is liable, or with intent to save, or knowing that he is likely thereby to save, any property from forfeiture or any charge to which it is liable by law, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.
Code of Criminal Procedure
Notice of appearance:
The text of Section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973
Section 41A, Notice of appearance before police officer. – (1) The police officer [shall], in all cases where the arrest of a person is not required under the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 41, issue a notice directing the person against whom a reasonable complaint has been made, or credible information has been received, or a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed a cognizable offence, to appear before him or at such other place as may be specified in the notice. ( “shall’ in Clause 41A is Inserted by Code of Criminal Procedure Amendment act, 2008 and sub-clause (1) further modified by Code of Criminal Procedure Amendment act, 2010)
(2) Where such a notice is issued to any person, it shall be the duty of that person to comply with the terms of the notice.
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(3) Where such person complies and continues to comply with the notice, he shall not be arrested in respect of the offence referred to in the notice unless, for reasons to be recorded, the police officer is of the opinion that he ought to be arrested.
(4) Where such person, at any time, fails to comply with the terms of the notice or is unwilling to identify himself, the police officer may, subject to such orders as may have been passed by a competent Court in this behalf, arrest him for the offence mentioned in the notice.” [This sub-clause (4) substituted by Code of Criminal Procedure Amendment act, 2010]
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