Andhra Pradesh Court Issues Arrest Warrant Against IPS Officer in Custodial Torture Case Involving Deputy Speaker Raghurama Krishna Raju

Amaravati, Feb 2026 : In a significant development with political and administrative ramifications, a court in Andhra Pradesh on Thursday issued an arrest warrant against Bihar cadre IPS officer M. Sunil Kumar Naik in connection with the alleged custodial torture of former Member of Parliament K. Raghurama Krishna Raju, who currently serves as the Deputy Speaker of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly.

The arrest warrant was issued by the Guntur mobile court following a petition filed by the local police, citing the officer’s continued non-cooperation with the investigation. The case relates to an alleged incident of custodial torture that took place in 2021, during the tenure of the YSR Congress Party government in the state.

According to officials, the Guntur police had last year served a formal notice to Sunil Kumar Naik, directing him to appear for questioning in connection with the case, in which he is among several accused. However, Naik reportedly failed to respond to the summons, prompting the police to initiate steps for his arrest.

Earlier this week, a police team from Andhra Pradesh travelled to Patna and took Naik into custody at his residence. Naik, who is presently serving as the Director of Fire Services in Bihar, alleged that the police entered his house by scaling the boundary wall and detained him without producing an arrest warrant, despite his insistence on seeing the legal authorisation.

The Andhra Pradesh Police subsequently produced Naik before a local court in Patna, seeking transit remand to shift him to Andhra Pradesh for further investigation. However, the court rejected the request, citing procedural lapses and stating that the inter-state arrest did not comply with due legal process. Following this setback, Naik was released, and the police returned empty-handed.

With the Guntur court now issuing a formal arrest warrant, sources indicate that another police team is likely to travel to Bihar soon to take the IPS officer into custody in accordance with the law.

The case has its origins in events dating back to May 2021, when Raghurama Krishna Raju, then a sitting MP, was arrested at his Hyderabad residence on charges of making derogatory remarks against the then Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy and allegedly inciting communal unrest. Raju later alleged that he was subjected to severe physical torture while in police custody, even claiming there was an attempt on his life.

Raju had been elected to the Lok Sabha from Narsapuram in 2019 on a YSRCP ticket but later fell out with the party leadership and became a vocal critic of the government. Ahead of the 2024 elections, he joined the Telugu Desam Party and subsequently won a seat in the Assembly. After the TDP-led coalition came to power, he was appointed Deputy Speaker.

In July 2024, following the change in government, Guntur police registered a First Information Report naming Jagan Mohan Reddy, three IPS officers, and others based on Raju’s complaint. Sunil Kumar Naik, who was then serving on deputation as Deputy Inspector General of the Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department, was named as Accused No. 7 in the case registered at the Nagarampalem police station in Guntur.

After returning to his parent cadre in Bihar post-2024, Naik approached the Andhra Pradesh High Court seeking anticipatory bail, firmly denying any involvement in the alleged custodial torture. The case continues to draw attention as it unfolds, highlighting issues of police accountability, inter-state legal procedures, and the intersection of law and politics in Andhra Pradesh.

(The content of this article is sourced from a news agency and has not been edited by the Mavericknews30 team.)