Sat Nov 30 06:17:40 UTC 2024: ## Telangana High Court Quashes Two FIRs Against Former BRS MLA
**Hyderabad, November 30, 2024** – The Telangana High Court has quashed two of three First Information Reports (FIRs) filed against former Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLA Patnam Narender Reddy in connection with the Lagacharla violence case. Justice K. Lakshman ruled that registering multiple FIRs based on essentially the same incident was “impermissible,” citing Supreme Court precedent.
The three FIRs, all related to the same event, were filed by different officials: the Sub-Divisional Police Officer, Mandal Revenue Officer, and District Crime Records Bureau DSP. However, the judge noted that all three complaints were written by the same person – a writer at the Bomraspet police station – and signed by the officials at different times. This, Justice Lakshman stated, indicated an intention to implicate the former MLA.
The judge deemed the Additional Advocate General’s explanation that officials were under pressure and unable to write the complaints themselves unsatisfactory. He criticized the officials for not explicitly stating in their complaints that they had signed documents prepared by the police station writer.
While the court quashed two FIRs, it allowed the investigation to continue under the remaining FIR (crime no. 1532/024), permitting the inclusion of statements from the complainants of the dismissed FIRs as witness testimonies. The ruling highlights concerns about the integrity of the initial investigation and the potential for misuse of multiple FIRs to target individuals.
First Piper 