In a major development in the AP liquor scam case, the Vijayawada court has allowed the seizure of the properties of the accused in this case. It has issued orders allowing the seizure of properties worth Rs 32 crore. The court has directed the investigating officer to serve notices to the respondents by August 1.
These include Rs 8 crore in cash seized from Chillakallu during the previous elections, as well as properties related to distilleries and suspicious transactions of the accused. On the other hand, the AP High Court has directed the SIT/CID officers not to take any hasty action against Chevireddy Mohit Reddy (A39) in the liquor scam case until next Wednesday.
The hearing on the anticipatory bail filed by Mohit Reddy has been adjourned to the 16th of this month. High Court Judge Justice T. Mallikarjuna Rao issued the order to this effect. Earlier, senior advocate C. Nageswara Rao argued on behalf of the petitioner.
Mohit Reddy says his name was included as an accused in this case on the basis of a confession statement given by a security guard working with his father, Chevireddy Bhaskara Reddy. The main allegation is that Mohit Reddy, as the chairman of TUDA, used TUDA vehicles to transport liquor bribes and spent that money in the elections.
However, his lawyer argued that the petitioner did not use TUDA vehicles as the election code was in force and there is no evidence that Mohit Reddy moved the bribe money with his instigation. He said that he would cooperate with the investigation and asked for anticipatory bail with conditions.
The judge announced that the hearing would be adjourned to the 16th of this month as the court did not have time to hear the arguments of the CID. Meanwhile, the SIT officials had issued notices under Section 179 BNS S to former MP Vijayasai Reddy in the liquor scam case, asking him to appear for questioning again on Thursday.
The notices state that they should come to the SIT office located on the 2nd floor of the Vijayawada CP office at 10 am on the 12th of this month (Saturday). Vijayasai Reddy has already been questioned by SIT officials once in the past in the same case.
