The CBI on Monday named home minister Sabita Indra Reddy as an accused in its fifth chargesheet in the Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy illegal investments case.
The chargesheet pertains to the allotment of 407 hectares of land in Kadapa district to Eshwar Cements for limestone mining. The chargesheet says most of this land was later re-allocated to Dalmia Cements, which invested in Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy’s Bharati Cements.
The chargesheet says Dalmia Cements purchased shares, each worth `110, at an exaggerated premium of `1,440 in Bharati Cements and made an investment of `95 crore in the company. The CBI alleges this was a quid pro quo deal.
Ms Sabita Indira Reddy has been named for the role she played in the alleged deal, when she was the mines and minerals minister in the YSR government.
The CBI alleged that the land was first allocated to Jaya Cements — which is an accused in the illegal mining case involving former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy — and later cancelled.
Subsequently, the land was given to Eshwar Cements. The company is alleged to have written to the government saying that Dalmia Cements was its sister concern, and sought transfer of a part of the land to the firm. The CBI says Ms Sabita Reddy, knowing well that all this was untrue, went ahead and transferred the land to Dalmia Cements.
The CBI has filed charges under IPC Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy to cheat), 420 (cheating), 409 (criminal breach of trust), and Sections 13(2)/31 (criminal misconduct), Sections 9 (taking gratification) and 12 (abetment of offences) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The chargesheet has listed 13 accused which includes three companies — Raghuram Cements, Dalmia Cements and Eshwar Cements.
The CBI’s main allegation is that Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy used Bharati Cements as a front to accumulate wealth that was acquired for favours done.