Hyderabad: K. Gangi Reddy had amassed around Rs 400 crore by smuggling red sanders and running an illicit liquor mafia, according to an ED estimate. He worked closely with smugglers in Dubai and China, including Sahul Hameed, another fugitive, AP police said. He used ambulances and RTC buses and bribed officials to smuggle red sanders to export points, police said.
“The police has booked 28 cases including murder, rioting, smuggling and bombing among others. The forest department has booked other cases besides the ED case on his assets,” said AP DGP J.V. Ramudu.
“Earlier, he got strong support from political bigwigs. He was protected by politicians who influenced enforcement agencies. He sought support from Maoists. He even went to the SC for bail,” police said.
Gangi Reddy was among the accused in the attempted assassination of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu at Alipiri in 2003. He was subsequently acquitted by a sessions judge. Gangi Reddy was involved in two political killings in 1989 and 1982 when he and his gang attacked rivals at Chavanavaripalli and Vathaluru in Kadapa. He was convicted in one case and imprisoned. He later saw potential in red sanders smuggling and joined smuggler gangs.
“He is an expert in organising felling, stocking and transport of red sanders from Rayalaseema forests. He hired labourers and criminals from villages near the forests and from Tamil Nadu,” Mr Ramudu said.
Mauritian PM signed deport order
The Ministry of external affairs listed the deportation of Red Sanders smuggler Gangi Reddy as one of the issues during the recent meet and PM Modi discussed it with his Mauritius counterpart.
A CID official said, “After this things moved very fast. On November 13, PM Anerood served a show-cause notice to Gangi Reddy asking him why couldn’t he be deported? Gangi Reddy replied through his lawyers but brushing aside his claims, PM Anerood signed the deportation order.”
Usually in India, such orders are signed by secretaries and under secretaries. However, the deportation order of Gangi Reddy was signed by PM Anerood himself. Interestingly Gangi Reddy had hired top lawyers of Mauritius to defend himself against deportation and extradition. “A top lawyer, Ravi Rutnah, a Member of Parliament of the ruling alliance party, had appeared on behalf of Gangi Reddy. The lawyer approached us and said he was doing it as part of his profession,” said a CID source.
“Perhaps this is one of the first deportations of this kind from Mauritius to India,” said a CID official.
Meanwhile, AP police investigations have found that several inspectors and deputy superintendents of police of Rayalaseema, whom Gangi Reddy had gifted villas, had helped him to escape the police net all these years.
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