Bengaluru: In a relief to Newspace Research and Technologies Private Limited, a city-based company engaged in unmanned aerial vehicle research, the Karnataka high court Friday stayed the investigation and all further proceedings in a case registered by Doddaballapur Rural police over allegations of criminal trespass by one of its drones.Justice M Nagaprasanna, while hearing the petition, directed inspector Sadiq Pasha to file an affidavit responding to the company’s allegations. The judge said appropriate action would follow if the officer failed to do so, noting that the petitioner had not been served a copy of the FIR, a basic procedural requirement.Newspace’s counsel told the court that the drone involved was a lightweight prototype weighing about 6kg and powered by a Chinese battery. The firm has leased nearly 19 acres in Doddaballapura for research and testing, holds necessary licences from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and supplies equipment to the Indian Army. The drone, he said, had also been showcased at the Republic Day parade and the company had been carrying out regular research and development trials at the site for the past 4-5 years.The company’s counsel argued that under the Drone Rules, operations conducted under an R&D licence in a green zone and within private premises could be questioned only by DGCA. Despite this, police registered a suo motu case of criminal trespass, alleging that the drone had entered neighbouring property. The company maintained that a battery malfunction during testing caused the drone to glide beyond its boundary and land outside its premises.Officials of the firm were allegedly made to sit at the police station for nearly six hours, and their request for a copy of the FIR was rejected. The counsel said the document was provided only after an intervention by the state public prosecutor’s office. Pasha, who is said to hold a law degree, reportedly told the company that under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), only the informant was entitled to receive an FIR copy.Justice Nagaprasanna observed that police were duty bound to upload every FIR and could not deny it to the accused. Taking note of the allegation that the officer showed excessive interest in the matter despite being shown valid licences, the court sought his explanation through the station house officer of Doddaballapur Rural police station by the next date of hearing.The interim order effectively halts all coercive steps against the company until the court examines the police response, offering temporary protection to the Bengaluru firm.MSID:: 127989386 413 |
