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CID gets nod to attach house linked to Chandrababu Naidu
The bungalow belongs to businessman and realtor Lingamaneni Ramesh, who leased it out to Naidu to be used as his official residence since 2014.
A special court for Anti-Corruption Bureau cases in Vijayawada on Friday passed interim orders permitting the Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Andhra Pradesh police to attach the bungalow of Telugu Desam Party president and former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu on the Krishna riverfront at Undavalli village in Amaravati, people familiar with the matter said on Saturday.
The bungalow belongs to businessman and realtor Lingamaneni Ramesh, who leased it out to Naidu to be used as his official residence since 2014, when the latter took over as the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh.
Justice B Himabindu passed the orders after hearing the arguments over a petition filed by the CID in May, seeking permission to attach the property that was owned by Ramesh.
Arguing on behalf of the CID, special public prosecutor Y S Vivekananda told the court that Ramesh had given the bungalow to Naidu free of cost as part of a quid pro quo deal for allegedly granting favours to him by changing the alignment of the inner ring road of Amaravati capital region.
In May 2022, the CID registered a case against Naidu, his erstwhile cabinet college P Narayana and Ramesh based on a complaint given by YSR Congress party MLA Alla Ramakrishna Reddy on the charges that large-scale irregularities took place in Amaravati capital city project and the alignment of the inner ring road.
Reddy alleged that the master plan was designed in such a way that properties of Ramesh and others close to Naidu were not included in the land pooling scheme.
On May 12, the state government issued orders asking the CID to attach Naidu’s riverfront residence under sections 3 and 10(a) (b) of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 1944, and other immovable properties belonging to Narayana, who was former state municipal administration minister.
The CID then filed a petition in the special court, seeking permission to attach the properties.
While passing the interim orders, justice Himabindu issued notices to Ramesh not to take up any transactions on the attached properties, nor should he give any third party rights to the properties. She, however, permitted him to file an appeal in a higher court.
With regard to Narayana’s properties, the court said the attachment of his bank accounts should be limited to the value of the alleged illegal proceeds of the crime.
TDP politburo member Varla Ramaiah alleged that the Jagan Mohan Reddy government was deriving sadistic pleasure by seeking to attach the bungalow of Naidu.
“Right from the day one of assuming charge as the chief minister, Jagan has been trying to drive Naidu out of his residence,” he said. “His government is not even giving permission to Naidu to construct a house at Kuppam assembly constituency.”
Ramaiah said that the previous TDP government had given permission without any hassles to Reddy to construct his bungalow at Tadepalli. “Even the riverfront bungalow of Ramesh was constructed on obtaining permission from the Congress government headed by Jagan’s father Y S Rajsekhar Reddy,” he said.
