Tuesday 5 June 2012

CBI questions Jagan for 3rd day, summons 2 aides

                                                                                 
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) grilled jailed YSR Congress chief YS Jaganmohan Reddy for the third day on Tuesday while his two aides have also been summoned for questioning in an illegal assets case.
CBI officials took custody of Jagan, as the young leader is popularly

 known, from the Chanchalguda Central Jail in Hyderabad and shifted him to the agency's office at Koti.
Congress legislator D Chandrasekhar Reddy and Sakshi TV director S Ramakrishna Reddy also reached the CBI office in response to the notices served by the CBI.
Chandrasekhar Reddy has reportedly worked as director in one of the companies owned by Jagan. He had recently called on Jagan's mother YS Vijayamma to express his solidarity.
The CBI may question him and Ramakrishna Reddy in the presence of Jagan about the investments received by Janani Infrastructure and Jagati Publications.
The CBI has so far questioned the Kadapa MP about the investments received from industrialist Nimmagadda Prasad in return for the land and other concessions given for his port project Vanpic.
He is believed to have been grilled about the investments that flowed from some companies based abroad into his Sandur Power and other firms.
Jagan, who was arrested by the CBI on May 27, allegedly conspired with his father and then chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy to dole out favours to companies which made investments into his businesses on quid pro quo basis.
The CBI Monday issued a notice to information technology minister Ponnala Lakshmaiah, directing him to appear for questioning June 7.
Lakshmaiah, as the minister for major industries in Rajasekhara Reddy's cabinet, had issued an order allocating water from Krishna river for a cement company.
The central agency on May 24 had arrested excise minister Mopidevi Venkataramna, who as the then minister for infrastructure and investments, had issued orders allotting huge land and granting other concessions to Vanpic.
Venkataramna along with Jagan, Nimmagadda Prasad and bureaucrat KV Brahmananda Reddy are currently lodged in Chanchalguda jail.
 Hindustan times

Vijayamma denies Congress claims

                                                                                            
 The supporters and activists of YSR Congress Party gave a rousing reception to their party's honorary president Y.S. Vijayamma when she addressed election road shows at Kandukuru in Prakasam district and later at Jaladanki, Kaligiri and Sangam in Nellore district on Monday.
Ms. Vijayamma along with her daughter Ms. Sharmila were seen waving to the crowds all through, as people waited for long hours to see them regardless of the sweltering heat conditions.
Refuting the remarks of AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad that the Congress would have made Jagan the Chief Minister if he had been patient, they said Ms. Sonia Gandhi did not give him an appointment, leave alone considering him for the Chief Minister's post.
At Kandukuru, Ms. Vijayamma asserted that the Congress party started victimising Jagan only because of his party's growing popularity, which posed a challenge to all other political parties. She played to the emotions of the crowd when she said that it was a painful experience for her as her husband was no more while her son was put behind bars. She hastened to add that Jagan was doing well and had asked her to convey his wishes to the people.
Addressing a large gathering at Jaladanki, Ms.Vijayamma brought up what she called suspicious death of YSR once again and asked as to why a faulty helicopter, which was in repair for four months, was used on the fateful day. There was no clarity as to which officer was responsible for doing this and no memo was served on anybody till now, she added.
Ms. Sharmila, whose speeches were received well, took a dig at Mr. Azad saying that his latest talk about Congress plans for making Jagan the Chief Minister came out only because Jagan was no longer in that party. This was evident from the fact that they were harassing Jagan in everyway, she added.
Mild tension
There was tension for sometime when police refused to allow Ms. Vijayamma's road show in Atmakur town on the plea that her programme was permitted around 2 p.m. while there was Congress road show in the evening. However, YSR Congress leaders changed the venue to Anjaneya Swamy Temple on the Atmakur bypass road and went ahead with their road show.
from Hindu

YSRCP candidate's gunman opens fire to quell stone-pelters

                                                                                            
The gunman of YSR Congress Party candidate G. Srikanth Reddy opened two rounds of fire in the air in Rayachoti town of Kadapa district on Monday to quell a clash and stone-pelting between Telugu Desam and YSR Congress Party functionaries.
A verbal duel took place when TDP followers objected to the YSRCP candidate's campaign in the old town stating that they were staunch supporters of the TDP candidate Sugavasi Balasubrahmanyam in the ensuing by-election to Rayachoti Assembly constituency on June 12. When the candidate, former MLA G. Dwarakanatha Reddy and the YSR Congress Party functionaries insisted on campaigning, some persons pelted stones that resulted in minor injuries to about half-a-dozen persons. Additional forces were rushed to the place and the situation was brought under control, according to Kadapa Superintendent of Police Manish Kumar Sinha.
Police sent a TDP activist Veeranagaiah, who sustained a bleeding injury on his hand to RIMS hospital in Kadapa, after TDP functionaries alleged that he suffered a bullet injury. Doctors examined him and said that the injury was not caused by a bullet but was caused by a sharp object. There were no internal wounds, doctors said. The incident occurred in Rayachoti segment falling under Rajampet Lok Sabha segment a few hours before the Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy were scheduled to visit the town on Monday evening.
Mr. Srikanth Reddy said he was canvassing peacefully in area where TDP “usually” rigged elections.
He urged police officials to take steps in advance to ensure peaceful polling. A police picket was posted in the area but the situation was peaceful, police said.
from Hindu

Two Congress MLAs quit, to join YSR Congress

                                                                                 
Two Congress legislators -- Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas alias Alla Nani (Eluru) and Ravu Venkata Sujay Krishna Ranga Rao (Bobbili) submitted their resignations to Assembly Speaker Nadendla Manohar here on Monday.
They also announced their decision to resign from the Congress and their plans to join the YSR Congress Party headed by Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy. Speaking to mediapersons after handing over their letters to the Speaker, they attributed their decision to the action of Congress leaders in stooping down to the level of making personal allegations even against late Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy's wife and daughter.
“We remained patient ever since YSR's death in the hope that Congress will change its attitude and stop victimising the late leader's family. Instead of making amends, they have intensified their attack against YSR's family and it has gone beyond the limits of our patience. We have decided to be on the side of a leader's family who had resurrected the party in the State,” they said.
The two Congress legislators who had switched loyalties to YSRCP, after Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy was summoned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for interrogation, said their decision was also influenced by the mood among their constituents. “More MLAs in the Congress are planning to quit and they will take a decision after announcement of the by-election results on June 15. State politics will undergo a major change after that,” the two legislators said.
The remark of AICC leader Ghulam Nabi Azad that Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy would have been a Central Minister had he continued with the Congress clearly exposed that YSR's family was being victimised for Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy's decision to part ways.
from Hindu

Jagan backing separate Telangana: Lagadapati

                                                                                           
Congress MP from Vijayawada Lagadapati Rajagopal asked the voters to support their party and reject YSR Congress Party as its president Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy is secretly supporting the separate Telangana movement.
Addressing a press conference at Indira Bhavan here on Monday, Mr. Rajagopal said that Jaganmohan Reddy wants to become the Chief Minister in Andhra region while helping TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao to become the Chief Minister of Telangana. If Jagan is strengthened, he is sure to work for the division of the State, he added.
Mr. Rajagopal further said that if the people chose to elect Congress nominees, their party would ensure that a resolution be passed in the State Assembly in favour of United Andhra Pradesh, which would reinforce the confidence of the 80 per cent of the people.

Sandur Power: CBI grills Jagan on investments

                                                                                
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is stated to have sprung a surprise on Kadapa Member of Parliament Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy on Monday, second day of the interrogation, by confronting him with documentary evidence on the flow of investments into his Sandur Power Company.
The documents showed the transfer of money totalling Rs. 124 crore into Sandur from Mauritius-based companies 2i Capital and Pluri Emerging. But Mr. Jagan is said to have replied that he had sold the shares to the companies and bought them back at a premium as they fetched a profit. It was another day of marathon interrogation till 5 p.m.
The CBI team produced the documents relating to Sandur to try and establish that Mr. Jagan was indulging in money laundering. Sandur was incorporated in Karnataka to carry on the business of generation and distribution of power and was taken over by Mr. Jagan from its promoters in June 2001.
The company was involved in its regular business till 2004 but started inviting investments after his father became Chief Minister. Industrialist Nimmagadda Prasad invested Rs. 140 crore by buying 21.42 lakh shares of the company at the rate of Rs. 650 a share. In a project whose net worth was not more than Rs. 150 crore, Mr. Jagan raised investments to the tune of Rs. 797 crore, creating doubts. Those in the know of things said that although the Directorate of Enforcement was keenly looking into the ‘money-laundering' and alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, the CBI's focus was on tracking the flow of funds into Mr. Reddy's companies and establishing the ‘quid pro quo' angle.
Meanwhile, Mr. Jagan was interrogated at the CBI office at Kothi on Monday unlike on Sunday when he was taken to the Officers' Mess in Malakpet. It came as a surprise to most city police officials who were providing logistic support as it was kept a secret till the last moment.
Security personnel had to spend some anxious moments as the convoy in which Mr. Jagan was being brought to Kothi was caught in a traffic jam at Nalgonda Crossroads .
from Hindu