New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed a vacation bench of the Telangana high court to take up the anticipatory bail petition of Andhra Pradesh lawmaker YS Avinash Reddy, in connection with the 2019 murder of his uncle and former state minister YS Vivekananda Reddy, on Thursday.
A bench of justices JK Maheshwari and PS Narasimha also expressed unhappiness over the high court taking more than a month in deciding the anticipatory bail plea of the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) MP, who represents the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat in the southern state.
“We direct the anticipatory bail petition be placed before the next vacation bench of the high court on May 25 and necessary orders be passed after hearing all parties,” the bench said.
Apprehending arrest in the case, Avinash Reddy, who is the cousin of Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, approached the top court for a direction to the high court’s vacation bench to take up his matter at the earliest.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is probing the larger conspiracy behind the murder, had served the lawmaker three notices to join investigation on May 16, 19 and 22, but he failed to appear on all three occasions.
On April 24, the Supreme Court set aside an earlier order that stayed his arrest while directing the high court to decide the anticipatory bail first. On Tuesday, the apex court bench noticed that despite the April 24 order, the anticipatory bail has not been decided yet.
“How much time does it take to decide an anticipatory bail petition. We are not happy that (high) court is not passing order despite our direction,” it said.
After the April 24 order, the high court heard the matter on two dates but could not conclude hearing before it closed for vacation on May 1. The matter was posted to June 5 even as the outer limit set by the top court for the investigation to be over in the case is to expire by June 30.
“We clarify that the fact that an earlier bench has heard the (anticipatory bail) petition will not come in the way of the high court (vacation bench) to hear the matter,” the top court said.
In October 2021, CBI named four accused in its charge sheet in the murder case of former lawmaker YS Vivekananda Reddy, who was found killed at his home in Pulivendula in Kadapa district on March 15, 2019. The name of Avinash Reddy, along with others, was separately added as a suspect. In November last year, the top court directed the trial to be shifted from Kadapa to Hyderabad as the family of the deceased raised apprehension over a fair trial owing to the closeness of the Andhra Pradesh chief minister with the Kadapa MP.
On Monday, a team of CBI sleuths reached the Vishwa Bharati Hospital in Kurnool to take Avinash Reddy into custody for questioning, but hundreds of followers of the YSRCP lawmaker prevented the federal agency’s officials from entering the building. Reddy’s mother is undergoing treatment for a heart ailment at the hospital.
After holding two rounds of talks with Kurnool superintendent of police (SP) G Kishnakanth, seeking assistance from the local police to arrest the MP, CBI sought help of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) citing lack of cooperation from the local police.
The Supreme Court was also upset over the unwillingness shown by the lawmaker to cooperate with CBI probe. The bench said, “After our order (of April 24), did you appear? The documents suggest that you have not been appearing. Are you apprehending arrest?”
Senior advocate V Giri, appearing for Avinash Reddy, said, “My liberty is at stake. I am seeking protection from arrest as the CBI has already arrested by father.”
The application moved by Reddy was opposed by Suneetha Narreddy, daughter of the deceased former MP. It was at her instance the top court passed the April 24 order setting aside an earlier order by the high court that directed CBI to supply written questionnaire to the MP before summoning him in the case. The top court held this to be a clear attempt by HC to “stultify” the probe.
Senior advocate Siddharth Luthra, who represented Suneetha Narreddy, told the court that earlier this week when CBI went to call the MP for questioning, his supporters created a law-and-order situation.
Since nobody appeared for CBI, the bench told Luthra, “We can understand if CBI counsel makes this statement. He is entitled to have his anticipatory bail plea heard. You are free to raise all objections before the high court.”
Following the Supreme Court direction on Tuesday, CBI sleuths chose to maintain restraint and decided to wait till the petition is heard by the vacation bench of the high court, people familiar with the matter said.
“On Tuesday, the CBI teams confined themselves to the police guest house in Kurnool and Avinash Reddy to the fifth floor of the Vishwa Bharati Hospital, where his mother is undergoing treatment for heart ailments,” a police officer privy to the development said, requesting anonymity. “The CRPF personnel, who were expected to arrive in the town to help CBI arrest the MP last night also stayed back in Hyderabad.”
Meanwhile, hundreds of YSR Congress Party leaders and workers from the Kadapa and other parts of Rayalaseema continued to pour into Kurnool town to express solidarity with the MP and prevent his arrest by CBI.
Local party leaders arranged food and water for them, as they blocked the roads leading to the hospital.
YSRCP general secretary and advisor to the state government on political affairs Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy said Avinash Reddy was not running away from the CBI probe. “He was questioned by CBI four or five times. Being a responsible MP, he will definitely cooperate with the agency. He is only seeking more time to appear before CBI only because his mother has been ailing and father was in jail. What is wrong with it?” he asked.
The party general secretary also defended hundreds of YSRCP workers and leaders coming to Kurnool. “They are concerned about his mother’s health and were agitated over the possible arrest of their leader,” he said. “They will definitely come in support of their leader if they feel injustice is being meted out to him.”
After the YSRCP came to power in Andhra Pradesh in 2019, an SIT was formed and reconstituted thrice to probe into the murder case. Not happy with the slow pace of the probe, the Telangana high court in March 2020 directed CBI to take up further probe on a petition filed by Suneetha Narreddy.