Dacoit’s plea turns against him in court

By S A Ishaqui
Hyderabad, Feb. 27: A habeas corpus petition filed by member of a notorious dacoit gang has boomeranged on him. Nakka Prasad, a member of the Telaga Pamula gang in West Godavari district, had in his petition stated that his wife had been illegally detained by the police on February 12. On the order of the AP High Court, the police launched a frantic search for the woman — only to discover that she had gone into hiding fearing interrogation in cases involving her husband.
Seized of the facts of the case, a HC bench comprising Justice B. Prakash Rao and Justice L. Narasimha Reddy on Wednesday slapped a notice on Prasad asking him to show cause why action should not be taken against him. The assistant government pleader, Ms Mohana Reddy, informed the court that the police had determined that Prasad had concocted the entire story.
She said he made up the story to safeguard his wife, who is also a suspect in some cases. Prasad’s wife returned home on February 25 after community elders intervened in the case, Ms Reddy said. She told the court that Prasad had earlier been imprisoned for theft and that two non-bailable warrants are pending against him. The bench pulled up the petitioner, saying, “Keeping the facts in the dark and trying to mislead the courts may one day result in the courts doubting the authenticity of petitioner in a genuine case.”