Anti-Corruption Bureau court in Hyderabad on Wednesday granted special status to Telugu Desam Party legislator A Revanth Reddy, who was arrested in connection with the vote-for-cash scam.
On a petition filed by Revanth Reddy’s lawyers, the court directed the authorities of Charalapally jail to treat him as a prisoner with a special status and extend him the facilities including a separate room.
Meanwhile Telangana Home Minister N Narasimha Reddy alleged that Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu was also involved in the “vote-for-cash scam”.
Revanth Reddy’s case will create a major upheaval in politics of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, he told the reporters in Warangal on Wednesday. He said his party was demanding that the name of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu should also be added to the case. “Anti-Corruption Bureau has the record of Revanth Reddy’s talk with Naidu over phone. The law will take its own course in the matter”, he said. The Home Minister said that the people of Telangana had rejected the TDP long ago.
Revanth Reddy was nabbed by the ACB sleuths on Sunday last when he tried to pay a bribe of Rs50 lakh to a nominated MlA Elvis Stephenson to seek his vote for the TDP candidate in legislative Council Elections.
The episode has also caught the attention of Income Tax Department and officials were trying to find out the source of Rs50 lakh recovered from the possession of Revanth Reddy at the time of his arrest.
Sources said that the IT officials were likely to approach the court for permission to question the MlA and his two associate presently in jail.
The ACB was also planning to seek the custody of the MlA and his associate for further questioning in the case. They are presently in judicial custody and their bail petition was going to come up for hearing on Friday.
TRS MP K Kavita has demanded that Chandrababu Naidu should be made accused number one in the case and Revanth Reddy should be named as accused No 2 as latter was acting at the behest of the former.
“TDP leadership is conspiring to weaken Telangana as they were unable to swallow the tremendous developmental work being done by the Telangana Rashtra Samiti Government”, she said.