The petitioner, Llluri Subba Reddy (Accused No. 6), filed a criminal petition before the Andhra Pradesh High Court at Amaravati seeking pre-arrest bail in connection with Crime No. 22 of 2026 registered at Sanjamala Police Station, Nandyal District, for alleged offences under Section 318(4) read with Section 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and Sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the SC & ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The petitioner's counsel argued that since the alleged offences carry imprisonment of less than seven years, the petitioner was entitled to the benefit of Section 35(3) of the BNSS, relying on the Supreme Court judgments in Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar and Md. Asfak Alam v. State of Jharkhand. The court, relying on the law laid down in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI, Arnesh Kumar, and Md. Asfak Alam, held that for offences punishable with imprisonment up to seven years, issuance of a notice under Section 35(3) of the BNSS is the rule and arrest is not automatic. The court disposed of the petition directing the Investigating Officer to comply with Section 35(3) of the BNSS (equivalent to Section 41-A of the CrPC) and follow the Supreme Court guidelines, while also noting that the petitioner must cooperate fully with the investigation.