Is refusal to give mobile phone to police non-cooperation? Andhra Pradesh High Court answers

The Andhra Pradesh High Court recently held that the failure of an accused to submit their mobile phones to the investigating agency cannot be termed as non-cooperation [Avuthu Srinivas Reddy Versus The Station House Officer]..Justice VRK Krupa Sagar made the observation while granting bail to former Member Parliament N Suresh Babu and businessman Avutu Srinvasa Reddy in a case related to the alleged attack by YSR Congress Party workers on the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) office in 2021.The State had opposed the bail saying that the accused had failed to produce and handover their mobile phones. The police want the phones to recover WhatsApp chats and collect Google timelines of the crime, the Court was told.However, the Court said the investigation agency cannot feel deterred in securing further electronic evidence simply because it could not take hold of the mobile phones from the accused..It also referred to a Delhi High Court verdict holding that an accused cannot be coerced to reveal the passwords of his gadgets and online accounts in view of the protection guaranteed to him under Article 20(3) (right against self-incrimination) of the Constitution of India. “In the light of the above principles, the failure of accused in submitting their mobile phones while in custody cannot be termed as non-cooperation from the accused,” the Court said.It added that while the material produced before it did indicate some sort of presence of the accused outside the TDP office, their continued detention must be justified by the prosecution.“The contention of the State is that there are other accused who are still at large and there is larger conspiracy which is to be unearthed. Those contentions show that qua these accused, investigation stood completed. They were arrested on 04.09.2024 and were remanded to judicial custody on 05.09.2024 and for the last one month, they have been in judicial custody,” the Court said..It further noted that about 34 accused in this case have already been released on bail either by the High Court or by the trial court.The occupation, the residences of the petitioners and their availability for all these years indicate that they are not likely to avoid the process of law, it added.“All these facts being considered in the light of the nature of the crime committed, this court finds any continued detention unnecessary. Hence, prayer is granted,” the Court ordered while granting bail to the accused..Senior Advocates Siddarth Dave, P Veera Reddy and P Sudhakar Reddy represented the petitioners.Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra and Public Prosecutor C Lakshmi Narayana represented the State. [Read Order]