New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday sought response from the CBI and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy on a plea seeking the transfer of the trial in the disproportionate assets case against the CM outside Hyderabad, preferably to Delhi. A bench comprising justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti also asked the CBI to explain why the trial was getting delayed. The apex court issued notice on the plea filed by YSR Congress MP Raghu Ramakrishna Raju.
The plea said petitioner's conscience is shaken by the manner in which state machinery (Central Bureau of Investigation) is being manipulated (to the point of apathy by the state machinery) to suit the sitting Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh after having illegally and unjustly enriched himself (and various companies floated by him) to the tune of Rs 40,000 crore (and necessarily, having caused loss to that extent to the public exchequer).
The plea contended that the Chief Minister has ensured that the criminal trials against him remain dormant and no fruitful steps are taken against him. “Shockingly, the state machinery (represented by the Respondent No.1/Central Bureau of Investigation) have been more than happy to be silent spectators to this abuse of the processes of the Hon'ble Courts (turning the criminal trials into 'friendly matches' between accused and prosecution)”, said the plea.
Also read: SC asks AAP MP Chadha to tender unconditional apology to RS chairperson
The plea claimed that since May 14, 2014, when the late Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy was sworn-in as Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, he along with his son YS Jaganmohan Reddy, had adopted an ingenious modus operandi to amass illegal wealth by abusing public office held by the then CM and his father of Jaganmohan Reddy, causing losses to the public exchequer.
“The modus operandi adopted by the father-son duo was to dole out public largesse in the form of properties, SEZs/projects allotment, grant of mining/port licences and other such benefits to persons of their choice (in violation of established norms and procedures of governance) at the cost of the taxpayers' money, with a clear understanding of quid pro quo-in the form of bribes given to the Respondent No.2 (Jaganmohan Reddy) under the guise of purchasing shares in different companies of the Respondent No 2 at a high premium”, said the plea, adding that chargesheets in this regard have been filed by the CBI.
The plea, filed through advocate Balaji Srinivasan and Rohan Dewan, contended that subsequent to filing of chargesheets, Jaganmohan has (not so) cleverly sought to distance himself from the key management posts of the companies concerned, however, he continues to exert control and management of the said companies through a complex web of corporate veils.
The plea stressed that in the present case, the trial has been dragging along for over 10 years and even charges have not been framed, which causes a reasonable apprehension of bias by the prosecution and judicial proceedings. “Shockingly, even the CBI and Enforcement Directorate appear to be silent (and perhaps even complacent) in this misuse of judicial process and show no real interest in proceedings of the criminal trials”, said the plea.
The plea further added, “The entire set of circumstances, including the prolonged and continuous absence of the accused person/ Respondent No (Jaganmohan) without any coercive steps being carried out by either the court (s) or the prosecution to secure the presence of the accused and proceed with trial”.
