Judicial custody of Reddys extended

CBI arrested Janardhana and Srinivas on Sept 5

A CBI special court on Monday extended till October 3 the judicial custody of former Karnataka minister and mining baron Gali Janardhana Reddy and his brother-in-law B V Srinivas Reddy in connection with an illegal mining case.

The CBI, which interrogated the duo for six days, produced them before the court at the Nampally Criminal Court Complex amid tight security on Monday morning. Later, they were taken to the Chanchalaguda jail after the court verdict on their custody.

The CBI has also filed a petition in the designated court for further extension of the custody of Gali Janardhana Reddy and B V Srinivas Reddy, managing director of OMC, in the illegal mining case against them.

The CBI counsel informed the court that since their arrest many victims and witnesses have come forward with even video evidence allegedly showing their involvement in illegal mining, illegal ore transporting...etc. The counsels said both the accused were non-cooperative while in CBI custody for six days and have not responded to many of their queries voluntarily. They also posed a threat of intimidating the witnesses if given bail, the counsels added.

The CBI advocates said they had sought the Reddys’ custody again in order to get more information on the benami companies, benami accounts and also other issues concerning the mining operations. Janardhana and Srinivas were arrested by the CBI from Bellary in Karnataka on September 5.

CBI sources said the agency was flooded with letters and documentary evidence from the general public of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka regarding the alleged “misdeeds and irregularities” of the mining baron.

“We have received over 350 documents, including some video clippings, since their arrest with offer to provide more if they were not let out,” the CBI officials said.