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Chandrababu Anticipatory Bail: In a significant development, the Andhra Pradesh High Court has granted anticipatory bail to former Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu in three cases, providing a substantial reprieve for the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo. The bail pertains to the Amaravati Inner Ring Road, sand, and liquor cases. Judge T. Mallikarjun Rao delivered the orders, directing Naidu to refrain from making any comments that could potentially influence the ongoing investigations.
Former minister Kollu Ravindra and retired IAS officer Srinaresh were also granted anticipatory bail in the liquor case. These cases were registered by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) following Naidu’s arrest in the Andhra Pradesh Skill Development Corporation case in September last year.
Naidu had spent 52 days in jail before being granted bail on October 31 by the High Court. During his incarceration, the CID registered two additional cases against him, one related to alleged irregularities in the construction of Amaravati Inner Ring Road and the other accusing him of favoring certain liquor companies during his tenure as chief minister from 2014 to 2019.
The TDP leader filed three separate anticipatory bail petitions in the High Court, each related to a specific case. The court’s pronouncements on these bail petitions come as a crucial legal development.
Naidu’s arrest in September was in connection with the Andhra Pradesh Skill Development Corporation case. The allegations suggested that Naidu and others had caused a loss of Rs. 300 crore to the state exchequer under the guise of setting up a skill development center.
Shortly after Naidu’s arrest, the CID booked him in the Amaravati Inner Ring Road case, and a liquor-related case was registered a few days before his release on bail. The liquor case stemmed from a complaint by D. Vasudeva Reddy, MD of Andhra Pradesh State Beverages Corporation Limited, alleging decisions taken without due process and business rules had caused a loss of Rs. 1,500 crore to the exchequer.
Additionally, on November 2, the CID booked another case against Naidu concerning the free sand policy. Former mines and geology minister Peethala Sujatha, along with former MLAs Chintamaneni Prabhakar and Devineni Umamaheswara Rao, were implicated. The CID alleged that the free sand policy, implemented without due procedures, significantly benefited Naidu and others.
In Chandrababu Anticipatory Bail petitions, Naidu argued that these cases were politically motivated, part of a vendetta orchestrated by the ruling dispensation to keep him in jail until the elections. The High Court’s decision on his anticipatory bail requests will likely have far-reaching implications in the state’s political landscape.
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