Amaravati, March 5 (NationPress) The police force in Andhra Pradesh interrogated Bihar cadre IPS officer M. Sunil Kumar Naik for approximately seven hours on Thursday regarding the alleged custodial torture involving former MP K. Raghu Ramakrishna Raju, who currently serves as the Deputy Speaker of the Andhra Pradesh Assembly.

Naik, who holds the position of Director of Fire Services in Bihar, faced questioning by Vizianagaram Superintendent of Police A. R. Damodar, the appointed investigating officer, at the Central Crime Station located in Guntur.

He is scheduled to meet with the investigating officer again on Friday.

In compliance with the directives from the Andhra Pradesh High Court, Naik is required to present himself to the police daily from March 5 to March 9.

While granting temporary protection, the High Court mandated his appearance before the investigating officer.

Previously, on February 23, Andhra Pradesh police apprehended Naik in Patna for failing to respond to questioning summonses. However, a Patna court dismissed the police's request for his transit warrant.

Consequently, the police sought a court's intervention in Guntur, which issued an arrest warrant on February 26.

The IPS officer subsequently petitioned the High Court for anticipatory bail.

His legal counsel argued that the allegations against him were politically driven. The court was informed that Naik's name was not listed in the FIR and that the petitioner had only detained Raju in Hyderabad concerning an unrelated case before transferring him to Guntur. Naik rejected any involvement in the alleged custodial torture of the former MP.

Justice Venkata Jyothirmayee Prathapa instructed the IPS officer to report to the investigation officer no later than March 5, with follow-up hearings scheduled for March 9.

Raju was reportedly subjected to torture while in police custody in 2021 when the YSR Congress Party was in power.

At the time, Raju, then an MP, faced arrest for allegedly making disparaging remarks against the then Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.

Initially elected to the Lok Sabha on a YSRCP ticket from Narsapuram in 2019, Raju later turned into a dissident.

He was detained on May 14, 2021, at his Hyderabad residence for criticizing the government and allegedly inciting communal tensions within the state.

Raju became a member of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) just prior to the 2024 elections and was subsequently elected to the Assembly, with the TDP-led coalition appointing him as Deputy Speaker.

Naik, who had been on deputation as the DIG of the A.P Crime Investigation Department (CID) at that time, returned to Bihar in 2024.

In July 2024, Guntur police filed an FIR against Jagan Mohan Reddy, three IPS officers, and others based on a complaint from Raju, who claimed there was an attempt on his life during police custody.