E-Paper
Former Andhra CM Jagan Reddy named in ₹3,500 crore liquor scam chargesheet: 'Received kickbacks'
While former Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Reddy's name appears in the chargesheet, he has not been named as an accused.
Andhra Pradesh Police, in a significant development in the alleged ₹3,500 crore liquor scam, has filed a 305-page chargesheet, which names former chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy as one of the recipients of monthly kickbacks reportedly amounting to ₹50-60 crore during the 2019-24 YSRCP regime.
While Jagan Reddy's name appears in the chargesheet, he has not been named as an accused, according to a PTI news agency report, which added that the local court is yet to take cognisance of the document.
"The collected amounts were eventually handed over to Kesireddy Rajasekhar Reddy (A-1). Rajasekhar Reddy would then pass the money to Vijay Sai Reddy (A-5), Mithun Reddy (A-4), Balaji (A-33) who would transfer it to former Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy. On an average, ₹50-60 crore was collected every month (during the 2019-24 YSRCP regime)," the report quoted the chargesheet, citing a witness.
Rajasekhar Reddy ‘mastermind’
According to the chargesheet, Rajasekhar Reddy has been identified as the "mastermind and co-conspirator" in the scam, allegedly manipulating excise policy, replacing automated Order for Supply (OFS) systems with manual ones, and placing loyal officials within the Andhra Pradesh State Beverages Corporation Limited (APSBCL). The document claims he used shell distilleries to route kickbacks to Jagan via another accused, Balaji Govindappa.
The police alleged Rajasekhar Reddy also funneled ₹250-300 crore in cash to fund YSRCP's election campaign, in collaboration with former MLA Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy. The proceeds were reportedly laundered through over 30 shell companies and used to purchase land, gold, and luxury assets in Dubai and Africa.
The chargesheet further claims the liquor policy introduced by the YSRCP government was designed to exert full control over alcohol distribution, allowing accused officials to extract hefty commissions.
"The accused planned the change in excise policy and also its modalities, to ensure that they would receive large kickbacks, majority portion of such kickbacks was received in cash, gold bullion etc," it read.
Investigators said the accused withheld OFS approvals from distilleries that resisted the demand for bribes.
On Saturday, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) arrested YSRCP MP PV Midhun Reddy after several hours of interrogation. In May, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) also launched a probe into the case, filing a money laundering case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The chargesheet also pointed to a 2019 meeting held at Hotel Park Hyatt in Hyderabad, allegedly convened by Sajjala Sridhar Reddy (A-6), where distillery owners were instructed to cooperate with the manual OFS system.
"During the meeting, the owners were intimidated that if they do not accede to their proposals and no orders will be issued to them. Such intimidation for kickbacks by threatening them with no issuances of OFS and thereby receiving kickbacks amounts to extortion," the chargesheet added.
Kickbacks reportedly began at 12 per cent of the base price and were later increased to 20%, the police alleged.
Meanwhile, several YSRCP leaders have slammed the arrest of Midhun Reddy, calling it politically motivated.
In a statement, former ministers Botcha Satyanarayana, Perni Venkatramaiah (Nani), Ambati Rambabu, Merugu Nagarjuna, and party general secretary G Srikanth Reddy alleged that chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu was using state machinery to target opposition leaders.
