The High Court · 2025

Petition under Section 528 of BNSS praying that in the circumstances stated in the Memorandum of Grounds of Criminal Petition,the High Court may be pleased to grant stay of all further proceedings, of the petitioner / Accused No. 3 in SC No. 890 of 2024 On the File of the Additional District And Sessions Judge Ranga Reddy District At Kukatpally pending disposal of the main Crl. Petition. This Petition coming on for hearing,upon perusing the l\Iemorandum of Grounds of Criminal Petition and upon hearing the arguments of Sri Ambedkar Dunna, Advocate for the Petitioner and Addl. Public Prosecutbr on behalf of the Respondent No. 1, The Court made the following: OROER 4:i:t ("r'r ;. L.' ' THE HONOURABLE SMT. JUSTICE JUWADISRIDEVI CRIMINAL PETITION No.1471 ot 2025 ORDER This Criminal Petition is filed by the petitioner-accused No.3 to quash the proceedings against hlm in S.C.No.89) of 2024 pending on the fire of the learned Additional District and Sessions Judge, Rangareddy District at Kukatpally. The offences alleged against the petitioner are under Section 370(AX2) of tlre lndian Penal Code (for short 'lPC') and Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the lmmoral Traffic (Prevention)Act, 1956 (for short'the Act')

02. Heard Sri Dunna Ambedkar, learned counsel for petitioner and Sri Jithender Rao Veeramalla, learned r\dditional Public Prosecutor for the State

03. ln brief, the case of the prosecution is that the Police, receivec credible information about running of brothel house and raided the premises at La-Home Tell Luxurv Rooms, near [\4edicover llospital, Road No.4, Patrikanagar, lVla<lhapur at Room Nos.201, 501 and found that the accused Nos. 1 and 2 were organizing brothel house and petitioner-accused No 3 is the customer of the said brothel house a . .. i.l ? 2

04. Learned counsel for petitioner submitted that the woman who was found with petitioner_accused No.3, is not a trafficked woman and petitioner is nothing to do with the alleged offences. The ingredients of the offence under Section 370(4)(2) of IPC and Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Act does not attract to the present case on hand. Thereby, he prayed to quash the criminal proceedings against the petitioner.

05. Learned Additional public prosecutor for the State submitted that there are specific ailegations against the petitioner and the truth or otherwise would come out only after conducting full-fledged trial by the concerned Court below and prayed to dismiss this Criminal petition.

06. ln view of the above facts and circumstances of the case, it is relevant to extract the provision under Section 370 of IPC: "370. Trallicking of a person: (1)Whoever, for the purpose of exploitation, (a) recruits, (b) transports, (c) harbours, (d) transfers, or (e) receives, a.person or persons, by- Firstlv- using threats, or Secoa of/ using force, or any other form of coercion, '...1 -i:-:'. 'a) 3 Thirdlv-- by abduction, or Fourlhlv-- by practising fraud, or deception, or Fifthlv- by abuse of power, or by inducement, including the giving or Sixthl receiving of payments or benefits, in order to achir:ve the consent of any person having control over the person recruited, transported, harboured, transferrecl or received commits the offence of trafficking. Explanation f- The expression "exploitation" s hall include any act of physical exploitation or any fornr of sexual exploitation, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude, or the forced removal of organs. Explanation 2- The consent of the victim is immaterrial in deternrination of the offence of trafficking. @/Whoever commits the offence of trafficking shall be punishecl with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall nol be less than seven years, but which rnay extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine. @lWhere the offence involves the trafficking of more than one person, it shall be punishable with rigorcus imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than ten years but which may extend to imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine. (!)Where the offence involves the trafficking of a mirror, it shall be punishable with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than ten years, but which may extend to imprisonment for life, and Shall also be liable to rine. (flWhere the offence involves the trafficking of more than one minor, it shall be punishable with rigorcus ,11 !l *, -i 4 rmprisonment for a term which shall not be less than fourteen years, but which may extend to imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine. (Qlf a person is convicted of the offence of trafficking of minor on more than one occasion, then such person shall be punished with imprisonment for life, which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person,s natural life, and shall also be liable to fine. (!)\Nhen a public servant or a police officer is involved in the trafficking of any person then, such public servant or police officer shall be punished with imprisonment for life; which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person's natural life, and shall also be liable to fine.,,

07. Section 370(A) of IpC reads as under Exploitation of a trafficked person'. t'7)Whoever, knowingly or having reason to believe that a minor has been trafficked, engages such minor for sexual exploitation in any manner, shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than five years, but which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine. (!)Whoever, knowingly by or having reason to believe that a person has been trafficked, engages such person for sexual exploitation in any manner, shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than three years, but which may extend to five years, and shall also be liable to fine. -.,1: ,t..-. ' . ? I I 5

08. As per Sections 370 and 370(,4) of lPC, any person by using threat or force or any form of coercion or abcluction by practicing fraud or deception or by abusing of power or bv inducing can only be terrned as a 'trafficked person'. ln the pres'ent case, even according to the prosecution, LW2 and 3-victims stated that they are doing prostitution for the sake of money.

09. Now coming to Sections 3, 4 and 5 of thr: Act, the provisions in Cetail are extracted below;

3. Punishment for keepinq a brothel or allowinq premises fo be used as a brethel. (!)Any person who keeps or manages, or acts or assists in the keeping or management of, a brothel shall be punishable on first conviction with rigorous imprisonnrent for a term of not less than one year and not more than three years and also with fine which rnay extend to two thousand rupees and in the event of a second or subsequent conviction, with rigorous imprisonment for a term of not less than two years and not more than five years and also with fine which rnay extend to two thousand rupees. @)Any person who- /e,lberng the tenant, lessee, occupier or person in charge of any premises, uses, or knowingly allows any other person to sue, such premises or any part the'eof as a brothel, or i: .,i ;) ?' 6 @,/being the owner, lessor or landlord of any premises or the agent of such owner, lessor or landlord, lets the same or any part thereof with the knowledge that the same or any part thereof is intended to be used as a brothel, or is wilfully a party to the use of such premises or any part thereof as a brothel. Shall be punishable on first conviction with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years and with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees and in the event of a second or subsequent conviction, with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years and also with fine. (QNotwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, on conviction of any person referred to in clause (a) or clause (b) of sub_section (2) of any offence under that sub-section in respect of any premises or any part thereof, any lease or agjreement under which such premises have been leased out or are held or occupied at the time of the commission of the offence, shall become void and inoperative with effect from the date of the said conviction. 4. Punishment prostitution. (lAny person over the age of eighteen years who knowingly lives, wholly or in part, on the earnings of the prostitution of a woman or girl shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees, or with both livins on the earninqs of Q)Where any person is proved- :.'i !"''i- :i . .: *';, 1 (a,lto be living with, or to be habitually in the company of, a prostitute; or (!,lto have exercised control, direction or influence over the movements of a prostitute in such a manner asi to show that such person is aiding, abetting or compel ing her prostitution; or (9)to be acting as a tout or pimp on behalf of a prostitute, it shall be presumed, until the contran' is proved, that such person is knowingly living on the earnings of prostitution of another person within the meaning of sub-section ('1 ):Provided that no s.tch presumption shall be drawn in the case of a son or daughter of a prostitute, if the son or daughter is below the age o'eighteen years. 5. Procuring, inducinq or takino woman or qirl for the sake of prostitution. (l)Any person who- /a)procures or attempts to procure a woman or girl, whether with or without her consent, for the purpost: of prostitution; or /b)induces a woman or girl to go from any place, tuith the intent that she may for the purpose of prostitution become the inmate of, or frequent, a brothel; or (g,ltakes or attempts to take a woman or girl, or causes a woman or girl to be taken, from one place to ano':her with a view to her carrying on, or being brought up to carry on prostitution; or (d)causes or induces a woman or girl to carry on prostitution, shall be punishable on first conviction ,ruith rigorous imprisonment for a term of not less than cne :f t. 6 r) year and not more than two years and also with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees. (!)ln the event of a second or subsequent conviction of an offence under this section a person shall be punishable with rigorous imprisonment for a term of not less than two years and not more than five years and also with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees. @lAn offence under this section shall be triable_ @,,lin the place from which a woman or girl is procured, induced to go, taken or caused to be taken or from which an attempt to procure or take such woman or girl is-made; or (&,lin the place to which she may have gone as a result of the inducemenl or to which she is taken or caused to be taken or an attempt to take her is made.

10. The Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Act deals with regard to punishment for keeping a brothel or allowing premises to be used as a brothel, punishment for living on the earnings of prostitution; punishment for procuring, inducing or taking woman or girl for the sake of prostitution. There are no allegations against the petitioner that he is running brothel, or he is living on the earnings of prostitution, or he procured girl for doing prostitution. ln the present case on hand, as per the case of prosecution, the sole allegation against the petitioner-accused No.3 is that he is the '.t :.1} 9 customer. Therefore, the allegation against the petitioner does not constitute the offences under Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Act

11. As seen from the entire case record, the victims joined brothel house and given their willingness to do serx with the customers. Furthermore, at the stage of filing of the FlFl or during the course o{ investigation or through the averments of the charge sheet, the Police could not putforth any material to sttbstantiate that the petitioner had knowledge and/or the reason to believe that i. i. the women werre trafficked for the purpose of prostitution Therefore, the ingredients required for constituting the offence I ( under Section :170(4)(2) of IPC are not made out against the petitioner 12 ln view of the above discussion ard having considered the fact that the petitioner-accused No..l had no knowledge that the women were trafficked for the purpose of prostitution, this Court is of the considered view that the continuation of the proceedings against the petitionerr-accused No.3 amounts to abuse of process of law, ther<:fore, the proceedings against the petitioner-accused No.3 are li;lble to be quashed. ,,.t1 10 13' Accordingry, this criminar petition is ailowed and the proceedings against the petitioner-accused No.3 in s.c.No.g90 of 2024 pending on the fire of the rearned Additionar District and Sessions Judge, Rangareddy District at Kukatpally, are hereby quashed. Asase quel, pending miscellaneous applications, lf any, shall stand closed //TRUE COPY// Sd/. L. VIJAYA LAXMI ASSISTANT REGISTRAR ECTION OFFICER ,f \ To, Kukatpally

1. The Additional District And Sessions Judge Ranga Reddy District At ? Ifr.e^X 4^dqltional [/letropolitan I/agistrate, Cyberabad at Kukatpaily 3. SHO, PS lVladhapur, Cyberabad. 4. One CC to Sri Ambedk-ar Dunna , Advocate (OPUC) 5. Two CCs to Public Prosecutor, High Court for the Stbte of Telangana at 6 Two CD Copies Hyderabad.(OUT) s ,']? l:., f .' I HIGH COURT DATED:04102t2025 i$. ORDER CRLP.No.1471 of 2025 :a-=: r\E' ST' r a 2 6 ll[il 5 212 L-t! \ ,l?O Allowing the Crl.P. \ A,,T }} e."i? l-t '! .;. !. 9i"" ":, ..,.,-,^