A city court has ordered Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to appear before it on October 16 in connection with the 2015 cash-for-vote case, where he is one of the accused, reported PTI.
The ruling was issued by the Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s court, which also instructed five other accused individuals to be present for the hearing regarding the consideration of charges linked to the money laundering investigation conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) concerning the alleged cash-for-vote scandal.
During a court session on Tuesday, the fourth accused was present while the others, including CM Reddy, were absent. Their absence was excused following petitions requesting exemption from attendance. The court emphasized that all accused must be present for the next hearing scheduled for October 16, 2024.
The case dates back to May 31, 2015, when Reddy, then affiliated with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), was arrested by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) for allegedly offering a bribe of Rs 50 lakh to Elvis Stephenson, a nominated MLA, in exchange for support for TDP candidate Vem Narendar Reddy during legislative council elections. Following the arrests, all accused were granted bail.
The ACB reported having gathered “clinching evidence” against the defendants, including audio and video recordings, and recovered the bribe amount. In May 2021, the Enforcement Directorate filed a charge sheet against Reddy and others as part of its ongoing investigation into money laundering associated with the cash-for-vote allegations. The agency asserted that the accused engaged in both the original crime and money laundering, with the bribe money classified as “proceeds of crime” under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The ED had previously attached the alleged Rs 50 lakh bribe cash under PMLA provisions.
(Witn inputs from PTI)