Blow to Andhra CM, cash-for-vote scam to be re-probed

Suresh Dharur

Tribune News Service

Hyderabad, August 29

In a major setback to Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, the Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) court today ordered re-investigation into the cash-for-vote scam.

The court set September 29 as the deadline to complete the re-investigation. The direction was issued based on a petition filed by Opposition YSR Congress MLA from Guntur district A Ramakrishna Reddy. He has sought inclusion of the CM’s name as an accused in the scam.

The case pertains to the alleged offer of bribe to nominated legislator in the Telangana Assembly Elvis Stephenson to vote in favour of TDP candidate V Narender Reddy in the Legislative Council elections in May last year.

An audio tape surfaced in the first week of June last year, purportedly containing Naidu’s conversation with Stephenson and assuring him that “all commitments would be honoured” if he voted in favour of the TDP.

Earlier, the ACB, which conducted the sting operation, had produced a videographic proof of the meeting between TDP deputy floor leader in the Telangana Assembly Revanth Reddy and Stephenson where Rs 50 lakh cash was offered as advance.

After initial political furore, marked by allegations and counter-allegations by the TDP, which is in power in AP and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), the ruling party in Telangana, the case was put on the backburner.