Telangana HC restrains CBI from arresting Avinash Reddy till April 25
Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Tuesday restrained the CBI from arresting YSRC Kadapa MP Y.S. Avinash Reddy till April 25 in connection with its investigation into the murder of former MP Y.S. Vivekananda Reddy.
Justice K. Surender of the High Court issued the interim order in an Avinash Reddy’s anticipatory bail petition, requesting the court to direct the CBI to release him on bail if it arrested him.
The CBI stated that it needed to further question Avinash Reddy and that the Supreme Court had set a deadline of April 30 to complete its investigations. Follow this, Justice Surender imposed the condition that Avinash Reddy must appear before the CBI for questioning till April 25.
The CBI must make audio and video records of the questioning, he said. The court will hear the anticipatory bail petition of the MP on April 25.
Continuing from where it left off on Monday, the CBI argued that it had more evidence to prove the involvement of Avinash Reddy in the conspiracy behind the murder of Vivekananda Reddy. CBI counsel said that the agency was trying to establish the motive for the murder, and the questioning or custody of Avinash Reddy was needed for this.
The CBI said Avinash Reddy was trying to divert attention from himself by alleging that the deceased was a womaniser and had participated in commercial land transactions and was involved in family disputes. The investigation so far did not establish that these issues had led to the murder, the CBI said.
Refuting the Avinash Reddy’s claim that Vivekananda Reddy had harassed the mother of the Sunil Yadav, CBI counsel said the agency had recorded her statement and she had denied that the incident took place.
Senior counsel L. Ravichander, representing Dr Suneetha Nareddy, daughter of Vivekananda Reddy, argued that Avinash Reddy’s counsel was maligning the CBI by claiming that it was leaking details to the media. The statement of Shaik Dastagiri, an accused who had turned approver, before the press on Monday, that he has been a life threat from YSRC leaders, is also to be self-scrutinised, senior counsel argued. There were heated arguments on these lines between Ravichander and senior counsel T. Niranjan Reddy who is representing Avinash Reddy.
Niranjan Reddy told the court that the CBI had omitted several angles and targeted Avinash Reddy. He submitted that there was a conflict between Vivekananda Reddy and Gangi Reddy, first accused, in relation to a ₹ 8-crore commercial transaction over a parcel of land in Bengaluru. He reiterated the allegation that Vivekananda Reddy was a womaniser and he wanted the mother of one of the accused and the wife of another for his sexual pleasure.
