TDP MP seeks CBI probe into YSR Congress-era liquor scam

TElugu Desam company (TDP) lawmaker Kesineni Shivanath (Chinni) has written to the exchange Bureau of investigating (CBI) demanding a dig into into an alleged ₹3,200 crore hard liquor scam during the previous YSR Congress Party government in Andhra Pradesh.In his letter to CBI director, Chinni, who represents the Vijayawada parliamentary constituency, said there is growing public outrage and demand for transparency over how such a massive scam involving state resources and public health went unchecked.“There is growing public outrage and demand for transparency over how such a massive scam involving state resources and public health went unchecked. The people of Andhra Pradesh have a right to know the truth and see those responsible held accountable, regardless of their position or affiliation,” he said.He cited the seriousness, magnitude, and interstate financial implications of the alleged scam, stressing the need for the central agency’s investigation.“A CBI inquiry will restore public trust and ensure that justice is delivered without influence or bias,” he said.Chinni’s letter comes at a time when the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the state police constituted by the TDP government has doubled down on its probe in the matter and arrested four people, including prime accused Raj Kesireddy, former IT advisor to the previous YSRCP government.The SIT authorities are on the lookout for K Dhanunjay Reddy, former secretary to the then chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy; P Krishna Mohan Reddy, former officer on special duty in the CM’s office and Govindappa Balaji, director of Bharathi Cements, whose anticipatory bail petitions were rejected by the state high court and the Supreme Court.According to remand report submitted by the SIT in the court on April 23, Dhanunjay Reddy and Krishna Mohan Reddy, along with Raj Kesireddy, YSRCP MP Peddireddy Mithun Reddy, and former party leader V Vijayasai Reddy, were allegedly involved in planning policies conducive to collecting bribes and managing the bribe collection network.Reacting to Shivanath’s letter, YSRCP leader and former Vijayawada MP Kesineni Srinivas alias Nani, who is also the former’s elder brother, wondered how the TDP MP had no faith in the SIT probe, ordered by the state government headed by his party president N Chandrababu Naidu.In a letter to Naidu, which he posted on X, Nani said, “The same MP is alleged to have been involved in financial transactions linked to the liquor scam, routed through his close associate Raj Kesireddy. When an individual potentially implicated in the scam seeks a CBI investigation, and simultaneously rejects the credibility of the SIT, it raises fundamental questions about the integrity and public perception of the current investigation.”