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Andhra Liquor Scam: Supreme Court has booked Balaji Govindappa, Pellakuru Krishna Mohan Reddy and K. in the liquor scam of Rs 3500 crore. Gave interim relief to Dhananjay Reddy by surrender. Among the accused, Dhananjay Reddy is a retired IAS officer and was secretary in the Chief Minister’s Office. Krishna Mohan Reddy was Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to then Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and Balaji Govindappa was the director of Bharati Cements.
New Delhi. The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted interim relief to three accused from surrender in connection with the alleged Rs 3,500 crore liquor scam in Andhra Pradesh. A bench of Chief Justice (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi stayed the implementation of the Andhra Pradesh High Court order in which the bail of these accused was cancelled. The High Court had directed him to surrender before the court hearing the case on November 26 and request for regular bail. The apex court has directed Balaji Govindappa, Pellakuru Krishna Mohan Reddy and K. On the petitions of Dhananjay Reddy, notices were issued to Andhra Pradesh and others and they were given relief from surrender till further orders. During the hearing, the bench said that there are 400 witnesses and ultimately the number could be 200.
The Chief Justice said, “Even if we assume there are 100 witnesses, how much time will it take you? Many times in ‘default’ bail cases, if the court considers a regular bail request and comes to the conclusion that relief can be granted to a person without prejudice to the fair trial, many applications become infructuous.” Senior advocate Siddharth Luthra, appearing for the state government, said that initially, the trial court had rejected our charge sheet and “now the charge sheet has come back and we will try to expedite the trial.”
The Chief Justice said, “We do not want to get into any academic discussion because it wastes the time of the court. You have to tell us what purpose will be served by keeping them in custody. We know that one of them was a senior officer and if you feel that there is a possibility of influencing the witnesses… then we can put some conditions.” Following this, the bench issued notice and asked the state government to file its reply within 10 days. “In the meantime, the petitioners are exempted from surrendering with the conditions already imposed by the subordinate court,” the court directed.
Among the accused, Dhananjay Reddy is a retired IAS officer and was secretary in the Chief Minister’s Office. Krishna Mohan Reddy was Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to then Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and Balaji Govindappa was the director of Bharati Cements. The prosecution has alleged political-business nexus, highlighting rigging in liquor procurement between 2019 and 2024 (during the previous YSRCP government), ignoring popular brands, preferential ordering of new labels and systematic bribery.
