High Court expresses concern over police handling of civil cases

Bengaluru: The High Court has strongly criticised the police’s involvement in settling civil cases within police stations, expressing concerns that these stations are turning into deal centres for real estate transactions. The rebuke came during the hearing of an application filed by Juvitta Ravi from Geddalahalli city, alleging that private individuals, with the assistance of Banasawadi Police Station, were attempting to extort money from him.

In response to the petitioner’s counsel, who highlighted the harassment faced by the petitioner in a civil litigation-related case, the bench headed by Justice M. Nagaprasanna expressed dismay at the behavior of the police. The High Court emphasized that police stations should not become settlement centers for real estate businessmen and noted that despite repeated orders from the Supreme Court and the High Court not to interfere in civil litigations, the police continued to violate these directives. The petitioner informed the court that private individuals were pressuring him to pay 12 lakhs, and the Banasawadi police had summoned him to the police station on November 21, 2023, instructing him to pay the money. Subsequently, on November 25, he was directed to appear at the station with a cheque for payment. The petitioner raised serious concerns about the misuse of police authority and the disturbance of public peace due to police involvement in settling civil and financial-related cases. In response to these issues, the High Court directed the Banaswadi Assistant Commissioner of Police to appear in court at 2:30 pm and adjourned the hearing.

The petitioner requested the court to instruct the state government and the city police commissioner to take lawful action based on the information provided on November 22.

Additionally, an interlocutory plea was made to direct the police not to take any coercive action against the petitioner or his family members until the disposal of this petition.