Macharla MLA Pinnelli Ramakrishna Reddy, who has been escaping from police arrest for the last four days in the EVM vandalism case, has got relief from AP High Court on Thursday night in the form of interim bail. The High Court ordered not to arrest him till 10 am on June 6 and the next hearing was posted for that day.
While eight police parties were searching for him, he approached the High Court seeking anticipatory bail. The High Court also gave such relief to other contesting candidates also, who approached the court. Tadipatri TDP candidate JC Asmit Reddy, YCP candidate Ketireddy Peddareddy, independent candidate Parimi Somasekhar Naidu, Denduluru TDP candidate Chinthamaneni Prabhakar, Narasaraopet YCP candidate Gopireddy Srinivasa Reddy and many leaders from both parties filed suchpetitions.
However, the AP High Court has imposed a condition that both Asmit Reddy and Peddareddy should not go to Tadipatri and not commit any criminal activities. The High Court imposed conditions on the MLA candidates including Pinnelli Ramakrishna Reddy not to influence those who were witnesses in the respective cases.
It directed the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of the state to keep vigilance and continuous monitoring of his movements. It said that not more than four people should accompany them. The Court made it clear that they could neither obstruct the investigation nor threaten the witnesses.
It was ordered that no crime can be committed during the period of interim anticipatory bail. The hearing was adjourned to June 6. To this extent, the judge Justice Venkata Jyotirmayi gave an order on Thursday night.
Pinnelli Ramakrishna Reddy approached the High Court on Thursday seeking anticipatory bail in the case registered against him by the Rentachintala police of Palnadu district in the case of destroying the EVM and VVPAT at the Palwai Gate polling booth of Macharla constituency on 13th of this month. He sought urgent hearing of the case.
When the court took up the case, senior advocate Niranjan Reddy heard arguments on his behalf. He said that all the sections registered against the petitioner are cases punishable within seven years. While the incident took place on 13th of this month, the police registered a case on 15th of this month based on the complaint given by VRO that unknown persons destroyed the EVM.
He found fault with the Election Commission giving orders for the arrest of Pinnelli after TDP leader Lokesh revealed a video on his X account, which may have been morphed.
On the other hand, TDP agent Seshagiri Rao’s lawyer Lakshmi Narayana said that Pinnelli went into the polling booth and broke the EVM. He requested that the petitioner should not be granted anticipatory bail without hearing the argument of the victim that he attacked Seshagiri Rao who had come in the way and seriously injured him. He court permission to file the impleaded petition.