Andhra liquor scam: SIT detains prime accused Kasireddy

Hyderabad, April 21 (IANS) The Andhra Pradesh Police's Special Investigation Team (SIT), probing the alleged multi-crore liquor scam that occurred during the YSR Congress Party regime, on Monday detained Raj Kasireddy, the prime accused in the case.

SIT officials detained Kasireddy at the Hyderabad International Airport soon after his arrival from Goa.

He told SIT officials that he would appear before them on Tuesday. They, however, asked him to accompany them. He was reportedly being taken to Vijayawada for questioning.

Earlier in the day, Kasireddy, who was then the IT advisor to Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, released an audio, stating that he would appear before the SIT on Tuesday.

His petition for anticipatory bail also came for hearing in the Andhra Pradesh High Court on Monday. The court refused to grant him immediate relief and adjourned the hearing for a week.

Kasireddy had failed to appear before the SIT despite four notices issue to him. The SIT has also issued a lookout notice to prevent him from fleeing the country.

He is suspected to have played a key role in the alleged illegal collection of nearly Rs 3,000 crore over a five-year period.

The SIT last week conducted searches in the house and other properties of Kasireddy in Hyderabad.

Kasireddy’s father, Upender Reddy, also appeared before the SIT for two days.

The TDP-led NDA government constituted the SIT in November last year to investigate the allegations of irregularities and corruption in the Andhra Pradesh State Beverages Corporation Limited (APSBCL) under the YSRCP tenure.

The TDP leaders alleged that some YSRCP leaders had links with the liquor manufacturers, floated many local brands, conducted cash payments, and made illegal money.

The SIT reportedly identified the involvement of some political leaders, private persons and others in the scam.

The investigating officers reportedly traced the money trail of kickbacks involving a sitting Lok Sabha member and a former Rajya Sabha member from the YSRCP.

Former MP V. Vijayasai Reddy, who resigned from the YSRCP and also quit as MP in January, appeared before the SIT as a witness on April 18.

The former Rajya Sabha member later told the media that the SIT officials asked him about a couple of meetings.

He termed Kasireddy as the mastermind. He also told the investigating officers that he did not know who received the money collected by Kasireddy.

Last month, TDP MP Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayulu urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to investigate the liquor scam in Andhra Pradesh, claiming that it is larger than the Delhi liquor scandal.

He alleged that the scam resulted in a loss of Rs 18,860 crore to the state exchequer from 2019 to 2024 and requested Amit Shah to order a probe by the Enforcement Directorate and other central agencies.

--IANS

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