With the cash-for-vote scam raging on creating a major crisis between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, controversial MlA A Revanth Reddy’s family function on Thursday became an occasion for Telugu Desam Party to show its political strength in Hyderabad.
The entire Cabinet of the State attended the engagement ceremony of Revanth Reddy’s daughter Nymisha with Satynanarayana Reddy of West Godavari district of AP.
Revanth Reddy, the accused in the cash-for-vote scam, was cynosure of all the eyes at the ceremony even as the Chief Minister N Chandrabau Naidu with wife and son, and all his Cabinet colleagues and political bigwigs attended the function held at N Convention Hall in Hyderabad.
Revanth Reddy, who was arrested by Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau on May 31 while allegedly paying a bribe of Rs50 lakhs to a nominated member of legislative Council, was released on a 12-hour bail from Charalapally jail on Thursday morning to attend the function. He appeared unruffled and kept a smiling face throughout
the ceremony.
Apart from the AP Assembly Speaker K Sivaprasad Rao and Ministers, MPs and MlAs, Telangana BJP president G Kishan Reddy, senior Congress leader Govardhan Reddy were also among the important leaders present at the function.
“We have come here as a show of support for Revanth Reddy who was a victim of political conspiracy of Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrshekar Rao,” said a Minister Ganta Srinivas Rao.
The court had imposed a condition on Revanth Reddy that he will neither talk to the political leaders or the media during his 12-hour bail and by the evening he was back in Charalapally jail to wait for the outcome of his bail petition.
Meanwhile, Telangana’s ruling party TRS and AP’s ruling Telugu Desam Party were locked in a bitter war of word over the cash-for-vote scam and the allege tapping of Chandrababu Naidu’s phone.
A day after Naidu complained to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Telangana Government had tapped his and 120 other important people’s phone, the Central Government ordered a departmental enquiry into the affair.
However, it was not clear whether the probe will be conducted by the Union Home Ministry or the Telecommunication Ministry to establish whether the phone was tapped.
Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao strongly denied the TDP charges and said that Naidu was in deep trouble as there was strong evidence against him. KCR known for his sharp tongue called Naidu a thief. “let him disown the voice on the tap,” KCR told reporters after the State Cabinet meeting.
Charging Naidu with attempt to destabilise Telangana State, KCR said, “I don’t expect that Modi Government will support Naidu in the face of this kind of treachery and onslaught on an elected Government of another State”.
KCR indicated that his Government has many cards up its sleeves against Naidu. “There are many things that come to my notice as Chief Minister. Not all things can be shared now. They will come out in public at the ripe time”.
When asked whether Naidu should be made an accused in the cash for vote case, he merely said, “law will take its own course”.
Speculations were rife that Anti-Corruption Bureau was planning to issue a notice to AP Chief Minister for questioning about his alleged role in bribing the nominated MlA Elvis Stephenson.
Naidu during his meeting with the Prime Minister, Union Home Minister and others demanded the change of the governor ESl Narasimhan expressing dissatisfaction over his handling of the situation in Hyderabad.
He also demanded that the powers over joint capital of Hyderabad should be immediately handed over to the Governor in accordance with the section 8 of the AP State Reorganization Act.
KCR on the other hand ruled out any such possibility and questioned how Naidu can deploy Andhra Pradesh police for his security in Hyderabad when it was a subject of Telangana Government.
In Addition to the Telangana police, a contingent of Andhra Pradesh police was also deployed at the residence of the Chief Minister Naidu in Hyderabad.
As a joint capital of the two states Hyderabad is hosting the residence and office of AP Chief Minister along with the state secretariat and the offices of the other ministers.
Meanwhile ESl Narasimhan who met the President yesterday, called on the Prime Minister Nrendra Modi today. The two discussed the current political situation in the two Telugu states, it was believed.
Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Kadiam Srihari met him but he described it as a routine meeting.
Meanwhile two Telangana ministers T Srinvas Yadav and Tummala NageshwaraRao said that Naidu will have to be answerable to the law if he has done something wrong.
“Instead of denying that the voice on the audio tape was his, Chandrababu was trying to mislead the people”, said Nageshwara Rao who was earlier in the TDP. Srinivas Yadav, who is also a defector from the TDP ranks said that there was no need for the Telangana government to tap the phone of anybody.