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The Andhra Pradesh High Court has directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the alleged custodial death of a 25-year-old man in Vijayawada and ordered the state government to pay Rs 25 lakh in compensation to his mother.

A bench of Justices Ravi Nath Tilhari and Alapati Giridhar observed in the October 16 order that custodial torture undermines the rule of law. “The custodial violence, torture and death in lock-ups, strikes a blow at the rule of law. It is a matter of great concern and more so, it is aggravated by the fact that it is at the hands of police personnel who are supposed to be the protector of the citizens and not predators,” the bench observed.

The court ordered that upon completion of the investigation, all officials found to be responsible for the custodial violence must be prosecuted.

It was stated that in May 2026, two police constables came to the residence and took him to the police station. According to the status report placed before the court by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), Krishna was apprehended on May 6 and brought to Krishnalanka Police Station in Vijayawada. Although his apprehension was lawful, he was neither produced before the jurisdictional magistrate within the prescribed period nor released from police custody.

The investigation by the SIT primarily found that Sai Krishna was assaulted in custody, sustained visible injuries, and succumbed. The investigation also indicated that efforts were made to conceal the death and destroy evidence, including the removal of the original hard disks containing CCTV recordings from the police station.

The court observed that it was an extraordinary situation demanding an investigation by CBI. It noted that the allegations were serious against the police officials and that the SIT’s status report established that the original CCTV hard disks were replaced with other hard disks.

“The possibility of institutional bias and even if it may not occur actually, its possibility in the minds of the family of the victim and the society at large, there being conflict of interest, and so an impossibility of fair investigation at hands of the police itself, doubting the credibility of investigating agency – (State police) cannot be ruled out that would be against the public interest as well as the interest of justice,” the court said.

The court further noted that there was a violation of the fundamental right to life and personal liberty of Krishna and thus appropriate compensation was required to be given to his mother.

“Awarding appropriate compensation is to apply balm to the wounds, an effective and sometimes only suitable remedy for redressal of the established infringement of the fundamental right to life and personal liberty at the hands of the public servant,” the court said.

The court thus allowed the writ petition and directed the CBI to investigate the circumstances leading to Krishna’s custodial death, while awarding Rs 25 lakh to his mother as compensation. It directed the state government to initiate disciplinary proceedings against the erring police personnel.